With New Zealand scaling back its vaccination requirements, Air New Zealand is roaring back to life. From today, Air New Zealand's domestic passengers will no longer have to show proof of vaccination or a negative test. There will also be further advancements from May 1st.

Industry progress

In a flurry of announcements today, Air New Zealand (ANZ) joined one of the last missing links in global air travel. With border restrictions removed from April 13, flights from Australia resumed with 11 Air New Zealand flights arriving from Melbourne, Sydney, Gold Coast, Brisbane, and Perth.

The airline says more than 4,000 of its passengers made the trans-Tasman crossing yesterday, with the first flight touching down at 06:00 from Perth into Auckland International Airport. Flight NZ176 was operated on a Boeing 787-9, registration ZK-NZI, with a flight time of 5:50 hours.

Air New Zealand CEO Greg Foran said that the drop in transmission and the high vaccination rates mean removing some requirements makes sense.

"New Zealand is moving back towards a sense of normality. We're seeing customers return to our domestic network and we're welcoming back Australians from today."

He added the caveat that COVID is not gone, and the airline will continue to revise safety measures based on the conditions it sees in New Zealand and around the world.

Trans-Tasman capacity is ramping up now the doors are open

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Air New Zealand is using its Boeing 787-9s to fill the high demand for seats from Australia to New Zealand. Photo: Getty Images

Simple Flying spoke to Air New Zealand today, with its spokesperson telling us that "while the airports were full and everyone was flat out, things were running smoothly."

ANZ chief customer and sales officer Leanne Geraghty said in a statement,

"This is the first step in welcoming international visitors back to our shores and we couldn't be more excited for both New Zealand and Air New Zealand."

Last week ANZ added an extra 96 trans-Tasman flights for April through to June, adding around 20,000 seats. Flights from various Australian ports are already operating into Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch, with Queenstown following June 24.

New Zealand is a popular winter destination for Australian skiers keen to experience the slopes and beauty of Queenstown and Christchurch.

The link between Australia and New Zealand is vital for each country's tourism markets. In 2019, 1.4 million New Zealanders visited Australia, and almost symmetrically, 1.5 million Australians visited NZ.

New Zealand is Australia's largest outbound tourism market and in 2019 was the second-largest inbound market, just behind China. The air connections across the Tasman Sea are vital for Qantas, Air New Zealand, Jetstar, and Virgin Australia and the strict no-COVID policies of both countries seem now a thing of the past.

Official updates

Even though Air New Zealand shared it will remove its 'no jab, no fly' policy from the beginning of May, information at www.covid19.govt.nz states that from 23:59 on May 1st, the following vaccinated people can enter New Zealand:

  • Travelers from nations who do not need a visa (visa waiver visitors)
  • Visitors from other countries who already hold a valid visitor visa

The following people can already enter New Zealand under current requirements:

  • Vaccinated and unvaccinated New Zealand citizens
  • Vaccinated New Zealand residents
  • Vaccinated passengers with a border exception
  • Vaccinated passengers on a working holiday scheme
  • Other vaccinated eligible visitors under current border settings
  • Australian citizens and permanent residents arriving from anywhere across the globe
  • Up to 5,000 international students to study in their second semester.
  • Existing temporary work and student visa holders who still meet their visa requirements. including people currently outside New Zealand and those in New Zealand who leave and want to return

Full speed ahead on the domestic and US markets

Domestically, passengers no longer need to show proof of vaccination or a negative test, and the airline is reinstating its food and beverage service from April 15.

Air New Zealand, Boeing 787, Paint issue
Most of the missing bags found their way back from New York to Auckland via Los Angeles. Photo: Vincenzo Pace | Simple Flying

Today also marked the resumption of Auckland-San Francisco non-stop services. Air New Zealand will resume flights to Honolulu on July 4 and Houston on July 7. It will also commence Auckland to New York JFK from September 17.

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Since March, the carrier has been operating daily flights from Auckland to Los Angeles and three times a week to Vancouver since February.

Air New Zealand's Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners boast a uniquely 'kiwi' cabin, with Business Premier, Premium Economy, and Economy Skycouch offerings. Its partnership with United Airlines gives customers access to hundreds of destinations across the US, while its Star Alliance affiliation connects them to Canada, Europe, and the UK.

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