Air NZ restarts 14 routes

THE international schedule for Air New Zealand is edging closer to a pre-pandemic look, with 14 more overseas routes to be launched over the next 16 days.

In preparation for the busy Jul holiday period, Air New Zealand has flagged plans to reintroduce a number of Australian services, bringing its international capacity back to 60% of 2019 volumes.

Auckland services include flights to Adelaide three/four times a week from 06 Jul, three-times weekly to Cairns from 05 Jul, twice weekly flights to Hobart from 07 Jul and services to the Sunshine Coast from 09 Jul.

Meanwhile, flights linking Christchurch and the Gold Coast will start up again on 03 Jul, operating two/four times a week, while the popular ski resort city of Queenstown will see services recommence even sooner, with flights linking Sydney (25 Jun), Melbourne (24 Jun) and Brisbane (24 Jun) starting from tomorrow.

Destinations like Honolulu, Houston, and Tahiti will also once again be linked from New Zealand over the next two weeks after enduring a hiatus of more than 800 days.

The ramping-up of services will also see the Boeing 777300 aircraft brought back, and the hiring of more than 2,000 New Zealanders as pilots, flight attendants, and ground staff.