In response to ongoing travel restrictions and continued low passenger demand, Air New Zealand has updated their COVID-19 international schedule through June 30, 2021. The schedule will keep critical links open for essential travel and cargo.
On Monday (January 18, 2021), Air New Zealand announced an update to their international schedule through June 30, 2021. The carrier has extended their COVID-19 international schedule due to low demand but will keep critical air links open for essential travel and cargo. The updated schedule is effective March 28th through June 30th and currently there are no changes to trans-Tasman services. Air New Zealand guests impacted by the schedule changes will be supported by the airline’s customer service team. Customers who have booked through a travel agent or third-party website should speak to the agent or a booking platform representative. In Monday’s schedule announcement, Air New Zealand’s General Manager – Networks, Scott Carr, said,
“Our schedule is driven by a number of factors including airport takeoff and landing slots which generally operate on a 'use it or lose it' basis. This means if you don't fly the majority of your schedule you may lose access to airports. We have been waiting to receive slot alleviation for the April to end of June period, which means our regular slot times are protected even if we can’t fly them all. As this is now progressing, we are now able to move ahead with adapting our schedule through to 30 June to better reflect the low demand environment we are currently operating in.
“We understand these are very uncertain times and it can be tricky for people looking to get home with a lot of things needing to line up including flights, testing and managed isolation bookings. We feel a responsibility to ensure Kiwis can come home and are doing our best to make this happen as smoothly as possible. We strongly recommend customers check government border restrictions for the relevant countries and/or individual passport requirements before booking a ticket.”
Source: Air New Zealand