Air New Zealand is pre-loading the bubbles for customers on board its first quarantine-free flights across the ditch –
24,000 bottles in fact!
From 19 April 2021, Air New Zealand will be ramping up flights between Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Queenstown
and eight of its Australian ports.
Air New Zealand Chief Executive Officer Greg Foran says the airline is incredibly excited to have the border reopen to
our Aussie neighbours.
“This is terrific news. I know Kiwis and Australians have been wanting to reconnect with whānau and friends for a year
now and we’re incredibly excited to be playing a part in those reunions.
“I’ll certainly be digging out my passport for the first time since I joined the airline to head across the ditch to see
my family and I’m especially looking forward to meeting some of my grandchildren for the first time.”
The airline has been preparing for a trans-Tasman bubble for a few months now, bringing furloughed crew back onboard and
ensuring they are up to speed with training, along with making sure its international airports and lounges are ready for
the influx of customers.
“Our people have shown incredible agility of the past 12 months as things have changed at an unbelievable pace. I’ve
spoken to several our front-line staff who are thrilled to show our customers the world-class Air New Zealand customer
service once again.
“We’d like to say a huge thanks to New Zealanders for standing by us while we’ve mainly been a domestic business for the
past year. I’m extremely proud to say that we’ve got one of the most robust domestic businesses of any airline around
the world. We look forward to being able to extend that across the Tasman.
“Pre-COVID-19, Australia was the largest tourism market for both our airline and New Zealand. We know a lot of tourism
operators have been feeling the lack of international visitors so we’re looking forward to playing a role in New
Zealand’s recovery.
“Using the strength of our domestic network we’ll be able to connect Australians with more destinations around the
country. With the rest of the world still out of reach, New Zealand offers landscapes and experiences that are up there
with the world’s best attractions.”
Air New Zealand trans-Tasman flights are on sale now. The schedule is as follows:AucklandStart dateFrequencyBrisbane19 April1-2 flights per dayMelbourne19 April1-3 flights per daySydney19 April3-5 flights per dayPerth19 April (subject to approval)6-7 flights per weekGold Coast19 April6-7 flights per weekAdelaide5 May3-4 flights per weekSunshine Coast28 June3 flights per weekCairns29 June3 flights per weekHobartTBC2 flights per weekWellingtonStart dateFrequencyBrisbane19 April3-5 flights per weekMelbourne19 April4-6 flights per weekSydney19 April6-10 flights per weekChristchurchStart dateFrequencyBrisbane19 April5-7 flights per weekMelbourne19 April6-7 flights per weekSydney19 April7-11 flights per weekGold Coast24 April1-3 flights per weekQueenstownStart dateFrequencyMelbourne19 April3-5 flights per weekSydney19 April4-7 flights per weekBrisbane5 May3 flights per week
Customers will be required to wear masks during travel to and from Australia and screening questions will be asked at
check-in.
Air New Zealand’s international flexibility policy was recently extended so customers with flights scheduled to depart
before 11:59pm on 31 December 2021 have the ability to opt into credit or make a change to the date or time of the
flight with change fees waived (fare difference may still apply).