Air New Zealand will increase services between Shanghai and New Zealand following strong demand for the airline’s new services from Chinese and New Zealand travelers.   

From 31 October 2007, Air New Zealand will operate two extra services per week between Shanghai and Auckland, increasing its weekly operations from three to five. The two new services will fly Thursday and Saturday, complementing Air New Zealand’s current services that fly Tuesday, Friday and Sunday.

All flights between Shanghai and Auckland are operated with the 313 seat Boeing 777-200ER aircraft, fitted with the airline’s Business Premier, Pacific Premium Economy and Pacific Economy cabins, all featuring on demand in-flight digital entertainment.

“As the Chinese do more business with New Zealand and are increasingly visiting the country as a travel destination, we have seen an upsurge in passengers flying our Shanghai- Auckland route. The new services will be introduced to meet this growing demand, offering greater flight flexibility, particularly among our business customers,” said Peter Elmsly, General Manager, Greater China.  

For the year ended June 2007, visitors from China to New Zealand increased by more than 20% to 116,000, while the number of Kiwis visiting China increased to 53,000.

The airline will also introduce double daily services between Hong Kong and Auckland on Fridays and Sundays from 30 November 2007 to 2 March 2008.

In addition, Air New Zealand has been operating a code share agreement with Air China and Shanghai Airlines, since 1 July 2007, on its services between Shanghai and Auckland and selected New Zealand domestic services. The two code share agreements have opened up both the Chinese and New Zealand markets to a greater audience.

The agreements see Air China and Shanghai Airlines code share on Air New Zealand’s services between Shanghai and Auckland. In return Air New Zealand code shares on Air China’s international services between China and Australia (Sydney and Melbourne) and on selected Shanghai Airlines Domestic China services (Dalian, Qingdao and Shenyang) that operate from Pudong Airport.

“China is a key strategic market for Air New Zealand and our code share agreements with Air China and Shanghai Airlines, and our service increases, demonstrate our continued commitment to the China market. As the national flag carrier of New Zealand, we are proud to be playing a key role in the bringing these two great countries and its people closer,” added Elmsly.

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