Sleep tight with Air NZ

AIR New Zealand has unveiled the Economy Skynest, a new lie-flat prototype sleep product featuring six full-length sleep pods for Economy passengers on long-haul flights.

The new innovative product development is being driven by the carrier increasing its number of long-haul routes, such as its upcoming Auckland to New York service, due to launch on 29 Oct.

Challenges associated with Skynest’s development are “immense”, said Air New Zealand’s Head of Airline Programmes Kerry Reeves, but insists “it was a prize worth chasing”, with the product so far earning “outstanding” feedback from customers & crew.

Air New Zealand will make a final decision on whether to go ahead with the Economy Skynest next year, depending on the performance of its inaugural year of Auckland-New York operations.

“We see a future flying experience where an Economyclass customer on long-haul flights would be able to book the Economy Skynest in addition to their Economy seat,” said Air NZ General Manager of Customer Experience Nikki Goodman.

To learn more about what the Economy Skynest will look like and what features it will offers guests, CLICK HERE.

MEANWHILE, Air New Zealand will be the first passenger airline in the world to join a NASA earth science mission, with one of its

Q300 aircraft to be fitted with next-generation satellite receivers in the last quarter of this year.

Data gathered in-flight will feed into NASA’s Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System.