Air New Zealand boosts capacity to China as Chinese airlines return

Air New Zealand is resuming daily flights to Shanghai as a major Chinese airline returns this week. Air China will touch down in Auckland on May 2, offering direct flights to the capital of Beijing, four times a week. The following day, Air New Zealand will increase its flights to Shanghai from four passenger services a week to daily. Air New Zealand and Air China are alliance partners, and the combination of the two services will see around 6500 seats a week between Auckland and China. “China is an incredibly important inbound visitor market, and we expect interest in visiting New Zealand to continue to grow among Chinese travellers,” said Air New Zealand chief customer and sales officer Leanne Geraghty. “Our strategic alliance with Air China provides additional capacity and improved connectivity, helping us to meet demand and showcase New Zealand as a world-class tourism destination.” Pre-pandemic, China was New Zealand's second-largest international visitor market, after Australia, with 407,000 visitors in 2019. Next month will see the return of another Chinese carrier, Hainan Airlines, which will operate two services a week to Shenzen – China’s third-most populous city after Shanghai and Beijing. Shanghai-based China Eastern Airlines and Guangzhou-based China Southern Airlines are already operating out of Auckland. Pre-pandemic, China Southern also operated out of Christchurch Airport.<br/>