Air NZ celebrates first anniversary of flagship New York route

Air New Zealand has published a 'love letter' to New York to mark the first anniversary of launching a direct service between the city and Auckland. The ultra long-haul route had long been an ambition of the national carrier's and its start was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but it has become a "resounding success" as Air NZ's flagship route, the airline said. But the letter addresses early turbulence in the 'relationship'. When it launched with much fanfare in September 2022, Air NZ suffered some teething issues on the route, with luggage left behind on the very first NZ1 JFK-AKL flight and a few refuelling stopovers in Fiji making the direct service not so direct. "Ultra long-haul travel does come with its challenges and early in our operation on the service we contended with some unexpected weather patterns," Air NZ Chief Customer and Sales Officer Leanne Geraghty said. "Like any route, when the weather doesn't play in our favour, we have contingency plans in place to ensure we get our customers where they need to be, safely. Fortunately, we have only had to use our contingency stopover three times since we launched our JFK service. Since February this year, we've provided a seamless service with all customers and their bags travelling on services as scheduled." <br/>