The head of Air New Zealand says resuming flights to Singapore for the first time in more than eight years will make travel easier to more destinations.
The airline on Thursday announced a new alliance with Singapore Airlines. Under the deal, Air New Zealand will launch a daily service between Auckland and Singapore, replacing an existing five-day-a-week service currently provided by Singapore Airlines.
Christopher Luxon. Photo: AIR NEW ZEALAND
Singapore Airlines will also progressively replace smaller aircraft flying its current daily service between the two cities with the Airbus A380.
Air New Zealand chief executive Christopher Luxon said the ease and frequency of links from Singapore - one of the world's major hubs - is beneficial for customers.
"There'll actually be fifty-plus different destinations that will be possible to be done in a code-share sense, meaning that you can get one ticket that connects you through to those markets," he told Radio New Zealand's Summer Report programme
Before Air New Zealand cut its previous services to Singapore in October 2006, it had been losing tens of millions of dollars on that route.
Forsyth Barr head of wealth research Rob Mercer said the alliance gives Air New Zealand the ability to add capacity with less risk.
"Air New Zealand's focused on lowering its operating costs, trying to make a profit on long haul routes.Re-engaging with Singapore will open up a whole lot of new routes beyond Singapore into Europe, Africa and London that will improve the choices both for New Zealanders travelling outbound and visitors travelling to New Zealand."
