Air New Zealand scraps Wellington-Invercargill route

Those in the deep south will soon have fewer options to get to the North Island as Air New Zealand pulls the pin on its Invercargill to Wellington service. The flights will stop from January 19, 2025, the airline has announced. Air New Zealand general manager domestic Scott Carr said the decision has come down to global engine maintenance issues putting aircraft out of service, coupled with a softening of demand domestically. “As a result, we have had to make the tough decision to no longer operate the direct Invercargill to Wellington service from 19 January 2025. “Customers will still be able to fly to Wellington via Christchurch. We will be adding additional flights between Christchurch and Invercargill to ensure there is sufficient capacity.“ Those who are already booked to travel will be re-accommodated, the airline said. “We know this change may cause inconvenience for some, but we want to assure our customers that we remain committed to connecting Invercargill to our wider network via the direct Christchurch and Auckland services.” Carr said a significant amount of care and planning goes into ensuring its domestic network services communities as well as possible, while also ensuring its operations are financially sustainable.<br/>