Starting April 13th, Qantas and Jetstar are adding flights to New Zealand with up to 30 weekly trans-Tasman flights on five routes, up from the two weekly return flights currently being operated.
On Wednesday (March 16, 2022), Qantas announced the addition of flights to New Zealand from April 13, 2022. Qantas and Jetstar will operate up to 30 weekly trans-Tasman return flights on five routes, up from two weekly return flights currently on offer. Prior to the onset of the global COVID-19 pandemic, the carriers operated over 170 return services weekly between Australia and New Zealand. Qantas will offer daily service from Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney to Auckland, as well as daily service between Sydney and Christchurch with a mix of Boeing 737s and Airbus A330s. Jetstar will operate three weekly flights from Gold Coast to Auckland with Airbus A320s. During May and June, both airlines will resume flights from Australia to Queenstown and Wellington.
In Wednesday’s announcment, Qantas Domestic and International’s CEO, Andrew David, said,
“Qantas and Jetstar are gearing up to help Australia reconnect with New Zealand after more than two years apart, and one short travel bubble. New Zealand was Australia’s second biggest source of international visitors before the pandemic, and Australians were the biggest source of visitors to New Zealand, so this is an important milestone as part of the recovery for both countries. With restriction-free travel possible from next month for Australians, we look forward to rebuilding our trans-Tasman flights.
“We know that testing requirements can deter some people from travelling. As the world shifts to truly living with COVID, it’s important that we normalise travel between Australian and New Zealand by removing layers of testing given the virus is endemic in both countries and both have some of the highest vaccination rates in the world. As a thank you to our frequent flyers for their ongoing loyalty throughout the pandemic, we’ve made every flight across the Tasman for the month of May a Points Plane, which means every seat can be booked using points.”
Jetstar’s domestic network in New Zealand also offers over 60 weekly return flights to five destinations, while trans-Tasman flights also connect seamlessly with Qantas’ Australian domestic flight routes and extensive international network. Eligible frequent flyers heading to New Zealand can also enjoy pre-flight time in Qantas’ Sydney and Melbourne International First and Business lounges, as well as the Brisbane International Lounge. Qantas continues to offer a ‘Fly Flexible’ booking policy with unlimited date changes on trans-Tasman flights booked before June 30th, for travel through December 31, 2022.
Source: Qantas