Latam Airlines returning to New Zealand two years after pulling out

South American airline Latam is resuming services to New Zealand in March, two years after it suspended the service because of the coronavirus pandemic. Latam Oceania country manager Chris Ellis said it would resume flights from Sydney to Santiago, via Auckland, on March 29, servicing the route with a Boeing 787-9 aircraft. The Chile-headquartered airline would operate the flights three times a week and look to increase the schedule to five flights weekly from July 1, he said. “We look forward to recommencing flights between New Zealand and Chile and once again connecting passengers with all of the adventures and beauty that South America has to offer,” Ellis said. The flights are now showing on Latam’s booking website with a one-way Auckland-Santiago fare on April 10 starting from US$1817.The Government has a five stage plan for reopening New Zealand’s border, starting on February 28 when eligible travellers from Australia will be allowed to return to New Zealand and self-isolate for seven days on arrival. At step four, earmarked for July at the latest, travellers from countries which did not normally require a visa, could start visiting, with the need to self-isolate. Ellis said passengers starting and ending their journey in Australia, who were not eligible to enter New Zealand, would transit only through New Zealand until restrictions were lifted. Latam paused services between Auckland and Santiago at the end of March 2020, at the same time airlines around the world were suspending services and grounding aircraft as the spread of Covid-19 and international border closures caused international travel to grind to a halt.<br/>