Qantas to add extra Queenstown flights over winter

Qantas is boosting flights between Sydney and Queenstown this coming winter as skiers flock to the popular New Zealand tourist hotspot. The airline plans to operate an additional 13 return flights over July and August, with 11 of those to run on selected weekdays and two scheduled for Saturday August 6th and 13th.

“Booking patterns suggest that more Australians are looking at a New Zealand ski break after what’s expected to be a strong start to the season this weekend,” Qantas said in a statement on Friday.

“It’s the latest example of Qantas taking a flexible approach to its fleet and network in order to meet growing demand for travel to short and medium-haul international destinations – following several earlier announcements of capacity increases on Asian and trans-Tasman routes.”

Qantas flies Sydney-Queenstown alongside its low-cost unit Jetstar. Virgin Australia and Air New Zealand are also on the route.

June 10, 2016 by australianaviation.com.au

Emirates plans to boost capacity on the longest non-stop route in the world between Auckland and Dubai

  Emirates plans to boost capacity on the longest non-stop route in the world between Auckland and Dubai by using a super jumbo A380 later this year.

The airline says it follows the achievement of high load factors on the Boeing 777-200LR aircraft operating the service since its introduction on March 1.

Emirates began regular services on the the 14,200km route using a smaller Boeing 777-200LR in March.

It did use a super jumbo on the inaugural flight as a one-off and said at the time it had plans to build to the higher capacity A380.

The double decker can seat 14 in first class, 76 in business class and 399 in economy class.

Emirates specially fitted out Boeing 777-200LR aircraft for the ultra-longhaul flights, carries up to 266 passengers in three classes.

Emirates president group services, Gary Chapman, said in March there was potential for the A380 to be used regularly on the non-stop route.

"As demand builds, and it's building very strongly, I can see a time when we have the A380 on it."

Emirates president group services, Gary Chapman, said in March there was potential for the A380 to be used regularly on the non-stop route.

"As demand builds, and it's building very strongly, I can see a time when we have the A380 on it."

Grant Bradley

Aviation, tourism and energy writer for the Business Herald

Tuesday, 07 June 2016

United Airlines - we've changed

United Airlines, preparing to return flights into Auckland, says that its product and service has changed for good.

The airline is the world's biggest by the size of its network and will start flying from San Francisco to Auckland from July 1, in partnership with Air New Zealand.

The service will be three times a week initially and increase to daily from October using a Boeing 787 Dreamliner.

Julie Reid, director for Australia and New Zealand sales, said the airline was a "new United."

In the past, United along with other US carriers had been slow to upgrade planes and products and some crew had a reputation for being grumpy.

Reid said her airline was undergoing a transformation.

"The perception is incorrect. The people who have travelled with us recently say "wow'," she said.

Although United had trailed in a recent American survey of passenger satisfaction of other US carriers - which have nearly all made substantial investment in aircraft and products since the global financial crisis - she said internal surveys of passengers who flew to Australia showed month on month improvement over the last two years."I think some of it's a perception issue rather than reality," she said.

Two and half years ago United's Boeing 747s to Australia had no entertainment or drinks for economy passengers.

Dreamliners on the route had reinstated these features for economy class, all passengers were offered wi-fi access across the Pacific and the business class had full lie flat beds.

The partnership with Air New Zealand allowed United to be competitive on the route it flew between 1986 and 2003 and Reid said her airline was here for the long haul.

"It's the right partnership at the right time. Auckland was on the table before oil prices dropped as low as they have and we're not going to come back to city and chop and change our mind in the next six months. We've done our investment. Fuel has helped but I don't think it's a decider for Auckland."

United and Air New Zealand were in a revenue sharing agreement where they align on fares, jointly market and sell the route and have reciprocal lounge and frequent flyer schemes. A key feature of the arrangement was access for New Zealand passengers to United's extensive domestic and regional network.

Auckland was on the table before oil prices dropped as low as they have and we're not going to come back to city and chop and change our mind in the next six months.

United Airlines and United Express operate an average of nearly 5000 flights a day to 342 airports across six continents.

She said there were no plans to launch the United service to Auckland with slashed fares but they would be ``good value''.

"I think when people see fares under $1000 (return) they see a good deal."

Rival carrier American Airlines begins Los Angeles-Auckland services later this month in partnership with Qantas and launched that service with some $799 fares.

Grant Bradley

Aviation, tourism and energy writer for the Business Herald

Wednesday, 08 June 2016

Air NZ sells Virgin stake to China's Nanshan

Air New Zealand, the country's national carrier, has sold a 19.98 per cent stake in Virgin Australia to Chinese company Nanshan Group, which owns Qingdao Airlines, and says it is considering options for its remaining 6 per cent holding in Australia's second-largest domestic airline.

The Auckland-based carrier said it will sell the stake in Virgin Australia at A33c per share, a premium to Virgin's last traded price on the ASX of A28c. Last month, Virgin Australia issued new shares at A30c apiece to a unit of HNA Aviation Group, the largest private operator of airlines in China, giving it a 13 per cent stake, and HNA said it intends to increase its shareholding over time to 19.99 per cent.

Air NZ chief executive Christopher Luxon resigned abruptly from the Virgin board in March and the airline announced it was considering selling its 25.9 per cent stake in Virgin Australia and had hired First NZ Capital and Credit Suisse to advise on its options.

The Kiwi carrier has spent an estimated A$373 million building up and maintaining the Virgin stake since 2011 but faces a considerable loss on that investment.

Virgin's share price dropped early this month after brokerage Credit Suisse indicated it could require an A$1 billion equity raising, double previous expectations, to reduce debt to reasonable levels after it posted a profit warning.

"We believe Nanshan Group will be a very strong, positive and complementary shareholder for Virgin Australia," said Air NZ chairman Tony Carter.

"The sale will allow Air NZ to focus on its own growth opportunities, while still continuing its long-standing alliance with Virgin Australia on the transtasman network".

Matthew Goodson, Salt Funds Management managing director, said the market was expressing approval of the sale. "There's a sense of relief that Air NZ has managed to extricate themselves from most of their stake in Virgin at a decent price. There has been some concern that Air NZ might not be able to sell the stake, or sell, but at a distressed price," Goodson said.

"If you look at Virgin's balance sheet, it certainly does have a small amount of equity. I think this is a good deal for Air NZ to move on. That's the market reaction," he said.

"The key thing is now what Air NZ does with the money. They have plenty of imputation credits. Will they pay a special dividend?"

The Sydney Morning Herald has reported Air NZ is expected to use the sale proceeds to pay a special dividend to its shareholders, which include the Government with a 53 per cent stake.

UBS said it believed net proceeds from the shareholding sale should be around 2c a share.

After a Virgin Australia capital structure review, Air NZ should also get its A$131 million shareholder loan to the Australian airline repaid.

"After both events we believe [Air NZ] will most likely return net proceeds from the [Virgin Australia] shareholding sale to its shareholders via special dividend," UBS said. "While exact timing is difficult to judge, we expect this to occur before the end of August."

However, Deutsche Bank analysts said with Air NZ still having $2.3 billion of new aircraft expenditure to fund through to 2019, they would not be surprised to see the board adopt a cautious approach to capital management for now.

The divestment would reduce Air NZ's debt gearing levels by around 4 basis points, they said. Reported gearing was 53.8 per cent in the first quarter of 2016, which is near the top of its 45-55 per cent target range with capital expenditure skewed to the first half.

Air NZ said it had "no comment" to make on a special dividend payment.

The Deutsche Bank analysts said accounting-wise, they expected material mark-to-market losses on disposal of Air NZ's full stake, which had a carrying value on its books of around $400 million in the first quarter of this year.

Air NZ and Virgin formalised an alliance in 2010 with codesharing agreements on transtasman and connecting flights and reciprocal frequent flyer and lounge access deals. The tie-up was first mooted in response to Qantas' two-airline strategy where its low-fare Jetstar unit operates domestically in NZ and links to longer-haul flights on its parent.

Nanshan is a large, privately-owned Chinese conglomerate with interests across a diverse range of industries including its own emerging airline, Qingdao Airlines, launched in April 2014.

The sale is subject to and will take place after receipt of Nanshan Group regulatory approvals from Chinese authorities.

Keeping the stake below 20 per cent prevents the triggering of regulatory approvals required under Australian law.

Air NZ shares closed up 5c yesterday at $2.22.

NZ Herald

Friday, 10 June 2016

By Tina Morrison

Month of discounts from new kids on the tarmac

Whanganui's new air service has announced discounted fares throughout the first month of its operation in a bid to attract passengers.

Air Chathams general manager Duane Emeny broke the news in the city on Wednesday to a Whanganui business audience.

Mr Emeny said no ticket prices would be more than $200. Given Air Chathams' refundable premium ticket for a one-way Whanganui-Auckland trip is $344, it represents a significant saving.

And he said there were other options frequent flyers could buy into once the privately-owned airline takes over the route from Air New Zealand on August 1.

The multi-pass ticket virtually cuts fare prices in half and again was fully refundable and flexible. Someone buying a 10 ticket block would get the fully refundable tickets for $170.

"And when your ticket balance gets a bit low you can simply top it up online through our website."

He said the company was talking with Air New Zealand about keeping people involved in that national carrier's frequent flyer services, especially the Koru Club membership. And the freight service side of the business was something they would also be pushing. There will be an express freight service charging $2 per kg with a minimum of 15kg.

He said Air New Zealand's decisions to quit the Whanganui route was a commercial one and no doubt made on a reasonable basis.

"But for a company like ours this offers a very big opportunity. We had a big operation in

Tonga for five years but the political landscape changed there and the decision was made to come back to consolidate in NZ.

"We effectively retrenched in Auckland and then started to grow. We were investigating a number of routes and then when Air New Zealand made its decision about Westport,

Kaitaia and Whakatane, we put in bids to service all three.

"We were as surprised as anyone when the decision was made about Whanganui. It's a larger region and has had an air service for so long. So with that background we see this area as a great opportunity," he said.

Mr Emeny said Air Chathams was "really comfortable" with the market they saw here.

"It was made easier by what's happened, as far as our service through Whakatane has shown us. Rotorua and Tauranga are close by, just as Palmerston North is not far away from you. So Whanganui has the same challenges.

"But we've been able to go in there and say we're an airline keen to support the community and develop a service around that. It started like that for us in the Chatham Islands a long time ago, and it worked for us."

He said they were looking forward to working with Whanganui, "understanding what you need". "Whanganui's been named one of the country's top 10 tourist destinations, so there's definitely potential here."

He said the schedule from August 1 mirrored the current Air New Zealand service for obvious reasons.

"But the thing is we're a small airline, so change is not hard for us to make to suit what your market needs," Mr Emeny said

And there's a chance the airline will decorate the Whanganui plane along similar lines to that flying to Whakatane.

"It was a joint venture with their district council. When we first started that run the aircraft was just painted white and some people said it looked a bit boring.

"We had regular meetings with the mayor and council and I floated the idea of a flying billboard. What it does is sell Whakatane as a beautiful destination, and it's flying in and out of Auckland, the country's biggest airport," he said.

"Once we meet everyone and get to know who to talk to here, we'll get involved in the same thing here. I think it would be neat. There are some key features of Whanganui that we could display on that plane."

FLIGHT OPTIONS: Air Chathams chief executive Craig Emeny said the company was looking forward to being involved with the Whanganui market.

Publication WAC

Friday, 10 June 2016

Jetstar free birthday flights offer

NN

Jetstar is celebrating seven years of domestic operations by offering passengers a free return leg ticket for flights to a range of domestic and trans-Tasman destinations.

The sale started this morning for travel periods between October-December and February-March 2017.

Jetstar's head of New Zealand Grant Kerr said seven years was a major milestone for the company.

"It's been a very big year for Jetstar's New Zealand operations with significant growth," he said. "We're delighted to be celebrating by offering thousands of more reasons to travel with us."

Its birthday sale fares start from $39 return. The airline does not say how many of the free flights are being offered as part of the promotion.

NZ Herald

Wednesday, 08 June 2016

New player ups the ante on flights to Hong Kong

 

Auckland-Hong Kong routes are shaping as a battleground as Hong Kong Airlines enters the market just as incumbent Cathay Pacific rolls out a brand new weapon - the latest long-haul airliner.

Add to the mix Air New Zealand's daily flights using newly refurbished Boeing 777s and there's a big challenge for airline revenue teams but big opportunities for bargain hunters.

Hong Kong Airlines will start flying on November 10 and launched with business-class fares of $2204, less than half that charged by its rivals.

Cathay Pacific, which has a revenue-sharing deal with Air New Zealand, has cut its return fares to China through its Hong Kong base to $1019.

Cathay's director of corporate affairs James Tong said the entry of a new player would help stimulate the market.

"In a sense it's a good sign - it means the whole market is building up and expanding," Tong said.

"From a competitive point of view we welcome another player - there are now three airlines promoting a destination."

Between the three carriers there would be up to four return flights a day between Hong Kong and Auckland and Tong said there was scope for his airline to add even more.

"The Auckland route is doing very well. We are very optimistic about this market."

Cathay will use new Airbus A350XWB planes on the route from October 31.

The aircraft is up to 25 per cent more efficient than equivalent size, older planes. The twin-engine plane will replace four-engine A340s the airline uses.

Leslie Lu, general manager of product for Cathay Pacific, said flying inefficient older planes made it difficult to compete.

Passengers were demanding better seats and entertainment, he said.

Air New Zealand's chief sales and commercial officer Cam Wallace said new planes do have an impact on a market.

When Air New Zealand introduced the 787 Dreamliner to the Shanghai route it was turned around immediately. "The airline economics improved with more efficient aircraft and it appealed to the high-end leisure market and the corporate market."

Around the margins there were also aircraft enthusiasts who would target certain planes to fly on.

Like Tong, he said the competition would stimulate the market and help push fares down.

"They're coming in with quite significant increases in capacity and prices will reflect this," Wallace said.

Hong Kong Airlines would mainly carry Chinese tourists to New Zealand who are flooding here in growing numbers for their holidays.

There had been a steady increase year on year in the number of Hong Kong and China travellers visiting New Zealand.

According to figures to March, the total number of visitors from Hong Kong and China was up 19.1 per cent and 27.8 per cent respectively.

About 380,000 Chinese come to New Zealand and within two years they are forecast to be the biggest spenders, ahead of the million-plus Australians who come here each year.

Hong Kong Airlines was established in 2006 and is a full-service carrier with 30 destinations across the Asia-Pacific region and has a young fleet of 30 Airbus aircraft with an average age of around 3.5 years.

Auckland Airport estimates that Hong Kong Airlines' new service will add 177,000 seats to the Hong Kong to Auckland route every year and will provide a $137 million boost to the New Zealand tourism industry.

By Grant Bradley

NZ Herald

Aviation, tourism and energy writer for the Business Herald

Air NZ flies direct to Vietnam

Air New Zealand has completed its first direct flight to Vietnam.

The plane left Auckland yesterday afternoon, and arrived in Ho Chi Min City at 8pm local time, just over 12 hours later.

Economic Development Minister Steven Joyce was on board with Vietnam's Ambassador to New Zealand, Viet Dung Nguyen.

The Vietnam route extends the airline's total number of international destinations to 30.

NZ Herald

Sunday, 05 June 2016

New flights are a response to growth

Air New Zealand has announced it will operate up to 10 new weekly flights between Auckland and Tauranga by the end of the year. The airline is also reinstating the 6.05 am service from Tauranga to Christchurch.

Air New Zealand described the region as a "significant growth market" and said it would operate up to 80,000 additional seats to and from Tauranga in 2017.

Tourism BOP chief executive Kristin Dunne said she was thrilled with the news.

"Any increase in access to the city and the region is fantastic," she said. "This is very positive from our perspective. Air NZ is absolutely seeing the value in our region."

Tauranga Airport, Tauranga City Council and Tourism Bay of Plenty had regular meetings with the airline and were always discussing how to improve services, said Ms Dunne.

JetStar decided last year not to add Tauranga to its new regional offering. But Ms Dunne said she did not think that had a major bearing on Air New Zealand's latest announcement.

"This is a demonstration of the fact they are very positive about the growth in the region and how significant it is for them."

Tauranga Airport manager Ray Dumble said the decision was good news, especially for the business community. Details of the timing of the new flights were not yet available, but they would include adding an extra flight before 9am, bringing the total to two, and were also expected to fill a couple of holes in the afternoon schedule.

"The Auckland flights, in particular, will give people a real choice as they can now do either a full or a half day up there," he said. "That's a biggie. It's becoming a bus service and that's what the business community wants."

Tauranga Chamber of Commerce chief executive Stan Gregec said it was welcome news for the business community. "Especially the reinstatement of the early Christchurch flight. We're pleased to see Air New Zealand responding to demand and adding more options for the travelling public and business people," he said.

"Keeping fares competitive and schedules convenient for business travellers should translate into benefits for everyone."

In its announcement, which includes changes to other regional services, Air New Zealand said it was making the adjustments as a result of feedback on the revised domestic schedule it issued earlier this year.

"The new schedules have been generally well received by customers, although a couple of communities raised concerns around new peak business flight timings," said general manager networks Richard Thomson.

"A strength of our business is the emphasis we place on consultation and responding to customer feedback. While the response to the new schedule was very positive we have listened carefully to stakeholder and customer feedback and we're pleased to have been able to overcome some key challenges identified in the following communities."

More flights:

* Air New Zealand is expected to launch its new Tauranga schedule as of October 31, 2016.

Thursday, 02 June 2016

NZ Herald

By David Porter

Sounds Air could fill gap left by Air New Zealand after national carriers drops Blenheim-Christchurch flights

Marlborough airline Sounds Air could pick up the slack after the national carrier announced it was ending flights between Blenheim and Christchurch.

Air New Zealand announced on Monday it was pulling out of its Blenheim-Christchurch and Auckland-Whanganui routes because of a lack of demand.

Sounds Air managing director Andrew Crawford said the privately-owned airline was exploring taking up the Blenheim-Christchurch route, which he said would operate at least twice daily.

The airline, which had a fleet of Cessna Caravans and Pilatus PC12s, had taken over other regional routes abandoned by Air New Zealand, including those between Westport and Taupo to Wellington.

Marlborough Mayor Alistair Sowman said he was disappointed and frustrated by the national carrier's decision.

"Now that Air New Zealand has left this vacuum I would anticipate our successful local operator Sounds Air might see the opportunity here so let's wait and see what happens," he said.

An Air New Zealand spokesperson said when the direct service ended on July 31, the quickest flight time via Wellington would be 90 minutes and the cheapest fare would remain the same at $59.

The reason the airline pulled the routes was because of a lack of demand, however it had been criticised for not waiting longer to see if demand would pick up on its larger planes.

The Blenheim-Christchurch route had been serviced by Beechcraft 1900D aircraft, however these were replaced by 50-seater Bombardier Q300s in early May.

Marlborough Airport chief executive Dean Heiford said he was disappointed the carrier had made the announcement so soon after switching to the larger planes.

"I'm disappointed they didn't give us a bit more of a chance to build capacity, but I understand it's an economic decision," he said.

The spokeswoman said the 50-seat services had been available to book for more than a year and the airline had dropped lead-in fare prices by 40 per cent to reflect the increased capacity.

But there had only been an increase of around two to three people per day, she said.

"Forward bookings on this route are not strong enough to sustain a viable service."

Staff at PC Media, in Blenheim, used the service at least once a week for business.

Technical director Lee Harper said the airline had not waited long enough to see if demand would pick up.

"It was three weeks in the middle of winter with barely any promotion," he said.

The times for business people travelling from Blenheim were good, but hardly anyone used the 6.10am departure time from Christchurch, he said.

It would be too difficult to get from Blenheim to Christchurch via Wellington by 9am, so Harper said staff would have to drive and stay overnight in the city.

Marlborough Tour Company managing director Chris Godsiff said the flight schedule had contributed to the lack of demand which caused the service to close.

"The flights that Air New Zealand put on weren't particularly user-friendly, they were pretty cranky times," he said.

International visitors coming to Blenheim might be put off by having to get two flights, he said.

"It's got to be a deterrent, because the last thing you want to do when you get to New Zealand is get another two flights, one is bad enough."

Sowman said the timing of the announcement was frustrating because the top of the South was expecting more Chinese visitors.

Destination Marlborough general manager Tracy Johnston said the news was disappointing but around 80 per cent of international visitors arrived in New Zealand through Auckland Airport.

Blenheim had good connectivity with Auckland, so she did not think cutting the Blenheim-Christchurch link would impact the number of overseas tourists coming to Marlborough.

 - The Marlborough Express

OLIVER LEWIS

Last updated 17:21, May 31 2016

 

Air NZ cancels Auckland-Whanganui, Christchurch-Blenheim regional flights

 

A lack of demand is forcing Air New Zealand to end regional flights between Auckland and Whanganui, and between Christchurch and Blenheim.

The national carrier said on Monday that both loss-making routes would stop from July 31 as "unfortunately ... [these] services do not have sufficient passenger demand to sustain a 50-seat aircraft service, despite the continued efforts of Air New Zealand and local stakeholders".

In November 2014 Air New Zealand said it would retire its loss-making 19-seat Beech aircraft fleet in favour of the larger and more economically viable 50-seat Q300 aircraft in regional centres where if felt there was enough demand.

While some regional routes were cancelled then, the airline noted on Monday that, over the past year, it had added nearly 250,000 extra seats to regional services and would add another 400,000 in the next year.

General manager of networks, Richard Thomson, said Air New Zealand looked closely at the Whanganui – Auckland service when the regional network was reviewed in 2014.

"While the service was marginal at that time we believed it was worth taking a chance on Whanganui and working with the local community in an effort to stimulate demand.

"Unfortunately the market dynamics have changed markedly since then as a result of competition entering nearby Palmerston North just 70 kilometres away. The greater number of destinations, higher frequency of service and wider range of connecting options on offer at the neighbouring airport have unfortunately served to undermine demand for Whanganui services and we've seen customers effectively voting with their feet and using Palmerston North rather than Whanganui Airport.

"Despite almost halving the average fare on this route we've been unable to create sufficient additional passenger volume to sustain an ongoing service and unfortunately this means we will cease operating to Whanganui."

Air New Zealand said while the Christchurch-Blenheim service would also end, it planned to boosts seats between Blenheim and Auckland and Wellington.

Customers booked to travel on suspended services past July 31 would be able to get a refund or choose a different airport to fly from.

Stuff

Last updated 17:58, May 30 2016

Kiwi Regional back in the air after four day mechanical delay

 

Kiwi Regional Airlines staff are mending fences with passengers after a small mechanical fault on Sunday led to a four-day wait for a replacement part for their only plane.

The SAAB340A plane was grounded in Dunedin on Sunday after the engine fault grounded the scheduled 11am flight to Hamilton via Nelson.

The replacement part had to be sourced from Australia, however due to the supplier being unable to provide the part, the search for an alternative took them to the United States.

An anticipated two day delay extended to yesterday morning when service was finally resumed. A total of 250 passengers on 12 scheduled flights were affected.

Some customers, including several from Nelson, expressed their frustrations to the airline directly or through social media at loss of the service. One Nelson woman, who did not want to be named, said the airline had not been helpful finding alternative flights.

Kiwi Regional's reservations manager Dave MacPherson said it took "three days to get the part, one hour to inspect it and half an hour to fit it".

MacPherson said the airline had sought to offer assistance in the wake of the cancellations with offices staying open until 11pm on most evenings to offer refunds or coordinate alternative transport.

However, he appreciated that given the situation some passengers had fallen through the cracks or made their own arrangements.

"There are things we could have done a bit better and certainly we will take plenty out of this," said MacPherson.

"Obviously making people get off in the freezing rain (in Dunedin)  isn't ideal and with a bitter southerly to battle against some passengers didn't hang around – we want to help those people.

He added that Kiwi Regional was continuing to track down the few remaining passengers affected, and stressed that anyone who had not already done so should get in touch so that they could resolve their issue directly or discuss possible reimbursement.

The idea of raising $2 million for additional aircraft through a crowd funded shareholder initiative remained a long-term objective, although the legislative side of things was still to be finalised.

"It is still on the cards but I can't see it happening in the next month," said MacPherson.

The problems of having one plane also surfaced in February, when the airline cancelled flights after grounding the aircraft for unscheduled maintenance.

Stuff

TIM O'CONNELL

Last updated 10:40, May 27 2016

New Zealand composer lands in Nelson

Acclaimed New Zealand composer Gareth Farr arrived at Nelson airport yesterday to lend a hand to the Nelson School of Music's all-night fundraiser, Sleeping with the Steinway.

Farr has composed a piece especially for the pianothon which will be performed with help from NSOM youth.

Sleeping with the Steinway creative director Sarah Lewis said she was excited to have Farr come to Nelson for the event.

"It's incredible. He's composed and gifted this piece to us."

He has worked with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra and Royal New Zealand Ballet as well as being named an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to music and entertainment.

Farr was greeted at the airport with helium balloons and a convoy of Harley Davidson motorcycles to accompany the Mercedes that picked him up.

He said he felt "very pampered" and had never been involved in an event like this before.

"There's just this excitement about the fact that it's an event, it's something monumental and also no one is brave enough to do something like this which makes it all the more exciting."

The piece Farr has composed, "Ripple Effect", will be played near midnight.

"It's a new work, composition, I tell you the really exciting thing about it for me is that it's for young performers," he said.

"I'm really very lucky, I get to write for some of the best performers in the world and I can just send it to them and demand excellence and they will play it perfectly but there's something about youthful enthusiasm."

Performers on the night should not feel pressured by Farr's presence.

"I've written for young performers, I've written for youth orchestras and sometimes they play a wrong note or two - I don't care," he said.

"I mean when I perform I play wrong notes all over the place. It's about the enthusiasm and the excitement and wanting to play the piece and being nervous about it, nerves are good. Nerves mean excitement and anticipation."

Sleeping with the Steinway begins on Saturday at 5pm and ends on Sunday at 3pm.

 - Stuff

TASHA LEOV

Last updated 07:24, May 28 2016

Wellington Airport profit rises 29pc

Wellington International Airport, which is 66 per cent owned by investment group Infratil, posted a 29 per cent gain in full-year profit as growth in international passenger volumes drove revenue.

Profit rose to $12.5 million in the 12 months ended March 31, from about $9.7 million a year earlier, the company said in a statement. Sales gained 4.8 per cent to $113.5 million.

International passenger volumes rose 16 per cent to 897,316 last year while domestic gained 4.6 per cent to about 4.9 million. The airport company agreed five new international services from Jetstar, Fiji Airways and Qantas Airways, adding 160,000 seats and it anticipates a further 110,000 seats when Singapore Airlines begins a Boeing 777 service linking Wellington with Canberra and Singapore in September. Domestic volumes were lifted by new Jetstar routes, expanded capacity from Air New Zealand and a contribution from Sounds Air, it said.

Last month the company lodged an application to extend its runway with the Wellington City Council and the Greater Wellington Regional Council.

The airport is seeking permission to build a 350-metre runway extension in a bid to attract long-haul flights from Asia and the United States, at a cost of $300 million.

Infratil argues that central and local government should foot most of the bill because the investment is in the national and regional interest while not being viable on a standalone commercial basis. Wellington City Council owns the other 33 per cent of the airport.

Capital development already underway includes a $65 million expansion of the domestic terminal and a $70 million transport hub, a Rydges hotel and in the longer term, a $60 million expansion of the international terminal.

Aircraft movement and terminal charges made up the biggest share of annual revenue, rising 5.1 per cent to $65.9 million. Retail and trading activities contributed $35.7 million, up 4.9 per cent, and property rent and lease income rose 2.8 per cent to $11.8 million.

The airport paid a dividend of about $13 million to the city council and a subvention payment of $39.5 million on Infratil.

By Jonathan Underhill

Herald

Friday, 20 May 2016

Business class fares slashed to Hong Kong

Hong Kong Airlines is promising a fare shakeup on the popular route connecting the Chinese city to Auckland and slashed business class fares.

The airline will start daily services to Auckland on November 10 and while incumbent rival Cathay Pacific is offering cheaper economy fares around the time, Hong Kong Air is offering fares less than half that of rival airlines on the route.

While Cathay and Air New Zealand, which also flies daily on the route, charge around $5800 for return business class fares, Hong Kong Airline' business class fares start around $2204, a price Flight Centre says will be "incredibly attractive."

Air New Zealand's best economy fare leaving November 10 and returning a week later is $1342.

Flight Centre's general manager product Sean Berenson said fares on the route were likely to be dynamic with incumbents responding to make sure customers get some great deals.

"It's certainly been an interesting start - that business class would be incredibly attractive for customers."

Hong Kong Airlines assistant director commercial Michael Burke said the best way to establish itself in New Zealand was through attractive pricing.

"We've certainly been an interesting start - that business class would be incredibly

Most of its passengers would be mainland Chinese heading to New Zealand on holiday but Kiwis travelling northbound would be an important part of the mix.

"We very much intend to find our place in the market and that inevitably will be through quite keen pricing - we need people to try us."

The full-service airline daily services will use an Airbus A330 aircraft with 283 seats, including 24 lie-flat business class seats.

It had been considering the Auckland route for the past three years and it would be the decade-old airline's longest route.

New Zealand is on fire as a market and we wanted to join the party. It was an obvious one in that regard.

Hong Kong Airlines assistant director commercial Michael Burke

Hong Kong Airlines is the eighth new carrier to launch or announce services to New Zealand in the past year where there have been 19 new routes established. Airlines have benefited from relatively low fuel prices in the past 18 months, have replaced older less efficient planes with new aircraft and are targeting record numbers of tourists wanting to fly to New Zealand and Kiwis travelling overseas at unprecedented levels.

"New Zealand is on fire as a market and we wanted to join the party. It was an obvious one in that regard."

China is New Zealand's fastest growing inbound tourist market and the airline saw no let up in the growth of Chinese tourism to this country.

Burke said he had much respect for Air New Zealand and its Hong Kong-based rival Cathay Pacific which has has been flying to New Zealand from the city for 33 years

Cathay's country manager for New Zealand & Pacific Islands Mark Pirihi said during that time we have seen a number of airlines arrive in New Zealand which no longer fly here.

"As a premium airline Cathay Pacific faces growing competition. Competition is healthy in all industries and our focus as a premium airline is in keeping our product innovative and our service delivery."

Wednesday, 18 May 2016

Herald

Air New Zealand plans more Nelson-Auckland seats

Capacity on Air New Zealand flights between Nelson and Auckland is tipped to increase by 8 per cent in the 12 months from October.

Air New Zealand regional airlines general manager Sarah Williamson said a new schedule was due to be introduced in October, which would include swapping some 50-seat Q300 aircraft for 68-seat ATR72 planes, increasing capacity on the route by about 8 per cent.

"That 8 per cent will be over the next 12 months but the most significant part of that change is October," Williamson said from Toulouse in France where Air New Zealand took delivery of a new ATR72-600 aircraft.

When asked if the increased capacity was in reaction to greater competition on the route from other airlines, Williamson said no.

Air NZ had looked at sectors with the potential for growth.

"So when we moved, for instance, from the [19-seat] Beech to the Q300, we looked at sectors that we thought would grow and we transitioned the 19-seater on to the 50 seater," she said. "The nice thing about that is that you have the same level of frequency but you all of a sudden have additional seats in the marketplace.

"We're working hard to put on additional capacity where we think there's the potential for that additional capacity to sell and the Nelson-Auckland market is one of those markets."

Nelson had some unique features.

"It's at the top of the South Island so to get anywhere north, you have to fly or take a boat so I think that means that Nelsonians are probably much more likely to fly than you might find in other parts of New Zealand," Williamson said. "There are probably people who live in Nelson because it's such a great place to live and commute to other places to work so there's probably a bit of a commuter set of people as well."

Nelson was important to Air NZ. As well as a growing area, it was home to the company's Regional Maintenance base and Air Nelson, which operates the Q300 aircraft.

 - Stuff

CHERIE SIVIGNON

Last updated 16:42, May 18 2016

Air NZ keen to fly high with new ATR aircraft

Air New Zealand has taken delivery of the 12th aircraft in a planned fleet of 29 new ATR planes aimed at boosting its regional network. The newly built 68-seat ATR72-600 was handed over during a ceremony on the outskirts of the city of Toulouse, in south-west France last week. The airline's 13th aircraft in the series stood alongside – almost ready to be handed over as well.

After accepting the new plane from ATR senior vice-president operations Thierry Casale, Air NZ regional airlines general manager Sarah Williamson said it was expected to be 2020 when Air NZ took delivery of the 29th planned new ATR72-600, which was set to make the airline the owner of the third largest ATR fleet in the world. No.1 is Lion Air in Indonesia, followed by Denmark-based Nordic Aviation Capital.

"We're very pleased to take delivery of our 12th aircraft," Williamson said. "We look forward to a long and ongoing association with ATR."

The additional aircraft for Air NZ's regional services meant "more seats for customers and certainly more seats at the lead-in fares".

Williamson said the typical sector in New Zealand was about an hour long, which was well suited to a turboprop – an aircraft with a turbine engine that drives propellers. ATR's 68-seat aircraft was "excellent" for Air NZ's needs "and we like the way ATR have worked hard on green credentials so that the aircraft is very efficient in terms of fuel, which means it burns less CO2".

Air NZ subsidiary Mt Cook Airline operates the ATR aircraft. Its head, former pilot Andrew Ward, said the ATR72-600 was a high-spec turboprop. In an upgrade of the ATR72-500, the 600 version also had a "full glass cockpit" featuring five screens of digital flight instrument displays as well as electronic maps and charts that were usually available only in the larger Airbus aircraft, Ward said.

In November, Air NZ announced it would buy 15 ATR72-600 aircraft. At list prices, the 15 new aircraft were collectively valued at $US375 million ($550m). Eleven of the aircraft were to replace the national carrier's ATR72-500 planes while the other four would help increase capacity on its growing regional network. The move to buy 15 new ATR 600s came after the company in 2012 announced its investment in an initial 14 ATR72-600 aircraft.

Williamson said the ATR72-500 aircraft would be sold. It follows a decision by Air NZ to phase out its 19-seat Beech 1900D aircraft – the smallest in its fleet. The Beech aircraft would also be sold, Williamson said.

Air NZ had also spent $1m refurbishing the interiors of its 23 Bombardier Q300s, which would continue to fly routes on its regional network, including Nelson-Wellington and Nelson-Christchurch.

In the 2016 financial year, Air NZ was on track to operate 5.9 million seats into and out of regional centres, a spokeswoman said. It had also offered more than 100,000 fares for less than $50 on its regional network.

"In FY17, we will further increase regional capacity by approximately 3 per cent," she said. "Increasing capacity results in even more low-priced fares as we have to build and further stimulate the demand required to fill these extra seats."

The multimillion-dollar investment in the ATR aircraft comes as competitors, such as Jetstar, boost their domestic routes.

Based on the outskirts of Toulouse, ATR is a joint partnership between Airbus and Finmeccanica, two major European aeronautics companies. Established in 1981, ATR had a turnover of $US2 billion in 2015.

The writer flew to France courtesy of Air New Zealand.

 - Stuff

CHERIE SIVIGNON

Last updated 08:19, May 19 2016

Putting the remote in the control tower

The world's airlines have ambitious plans to double the fleet of commercial jets during the next two decades. The trouble: there won't be enough controllers to help those 44,000 planes take off and land safely.

A shortage of air traffic controllers may rein in expansion by the aviation industry and economic development by emerging nations such as India, which wants to activate hundreds of largely unused runways to spur growth. There is a potential solution, and it resembles a video gamer's dream — a wall of big-screen TVs and a few tablet computers controlled by a stylus.

Some airports are now testing "remote towers" from Saab AB and Thales SA that allow controllers sitting hundreds of kilometres away to monitor operations through high-definition cameras and sensors. The technology is sensitive enough to penetrate fog and detect wild animals on runways, and the companies say it is also cheaper than hiring people to fill vacancies at smaller or remote airports.

"It's a potential game-changer," says Neil Hansford, chairman of Strategic Aviation Solutions, a consultancy firm north of Sydney. "There's a shortage. As you go to more and more airports, it's going to exacerbate the problem."

And plans are moving apace for more and more airports. Worldwide, projects to redevelop or build new airfields surpass US$900 billion, according to the CAPA Centre for Aviation, a Sydney-based consultancy.

By 2030, the world will need another 40,000 air traffic controllers to handle those flights, according to the International Civil Aviation Organisation. Yet, there are so few training facilities in Asia, the fastest-growing travel market, that the region will have a deficit of more than 1000 controllers each year, says ICAO.

Partly because of that, the US Federal Aviation Administration downgraded India's aviation safety rating in 2014 and Thailand's last year. The agency said neither country's civil aviation authority was up to scratch and barred their airlines from offering new services to the US. After India addressed the FAA's safety concerns, its rating was restored last year.

Companies such as Stockholm-based Saab and Paris-based Thales can install towers loaded with cameras and sensors covering 360 degrees overlooking runways to beam high-definition video and sound to a distant control centre. One controller can manage several airports remotely.

"We can see a huge interest from all continents," says Dan-Aake Enstedt, Saab's Asia-Pacific manager. "This lets you operate an airport that might otherwise be too expensive to keep open, or help to smooth the flow of traffic around major airports as they expand."

Saab's system resembles an immersive Imax theatre. A bank of screens on the wall gives the impression of looking out the window onto a remote airfield, with radar blips tracked on a desktop monitor and flights managed by oversized tablet computers that respond to a stylus. Graphics pop up on the screens, and the controller can manoeuvre a zoom camera to take a closer look at the runways or the planes if an anomaly warning sounds.

The technology guides planes into central Sweden's Ornskoldsvik Airport, with controllers monitoring from more than 100km away at Sundsvall-Timra Airport. It was the first remote system installed in the world.

Australia tested Saab's remote tower in Alice Springs. The airport was run from a control tower 1500km to the south in Adelaide. Airservices Australia, the government entity that employs more than 1000 controllers, says it is considering "further evaluation and potential deployment of this type of technology." Thales rolled out its competing version, including night-vision cameras, last month at the air-traffic industry's annual congress in Madrid. The system also is appropriate for war zones and "previously 'unjustifiable' sites," the company says.

Saab senses opportunity in India, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi's plan to bolster the economy includes reviving remote airstrips to increase passenger and cargo traffic, says Varun Vijay Singh, marketing director for air traffic management at Saab's Indian business.

Only 75 of India's 476 airports — just 16 per cent — attract scheduled flights. Boeing predicts Indian carriers will need 1740 new aircraft during the next 20 years. Someone has to help land them, Saab's Singh says.

"It's a tremendous opportunity."

Aviation plan offers big savings

Aviation stands to save $2 billion over the next 20 years by replacing ageing air traffic management systems with modern technology, says New Southern Sky director Steve Smyth.

Ground-based radar technology now used to manage traffic dates from just after WWII, and the New Southern Sky programme will see it replaced with extensive satellite tracking.

Smyth says the changes echo a similar technology switch elsewhere in the world. "It's all about delivering economic and environmental benefits. We'll see shorter, more direct journeys and a faster turnaround of aircraft. This will reduce the amount of CO2 generated by the industry and the change will pay off in terms of fuel savings, lower operating costs for airlines and less capital investment tied up in aircraft."

We'll see shorter, more direct journeys and a faster turnaround of aircraft.

Steve Smyth, New Southern Sky.

In many cases, flying more direct routes could mean more noise for people living under flight paths, but Smyth says this is offset by quieter planes than in the past.

He says a recent 22-week study looked at international flights taking a more direct northern approach route into Auckland airport. "The result of the changed flightpath meant 720,000kg less CO2 was dumped into the atmosphere", he says.

In addition to more direct flights, the new system will link airports to each other. That way, flights can be better timed to reduce the number of planes waiting in costly and environmentally damaging holding patterns above cities as they wait for a landing slot.

It's not just pilots, Smyth says. Baggage handlers, engineers, cleaners and catering staff will all have access to better information so they can become more efficient.

He says the crew on a plane leaving Heathrow in London will have up-to-date information on conditions at Auckland before takeoff and will get updates en route. A pilot will know well in advance what wind conditions to expect and if there is, say, volcano activity.

New Southern Sky will take 10 years to implement the National Airspace and Air Navigation Plan, approved by Cabinet in 2014.

Next month a conference at Auckland Airport will review progress after the first two-year stage of the project. Aviation sector companies will attend, as well as staff from Martin Jetpack and Rocketlabs. The rocket company is there because the new systems will manage airspace all the way to the edge of the atmosphere.Smyth says one subject for discussion will be how to fit drones and unmanned aircraft into flight patterns. He says drones are already being widely used, and expects unmanned cargo planes could take to the skies before the project is completed in eight years.

While New Southern Sky is a New Zealand project, Smyth says there are many similar initiatives underway elsewhere. "Many of the challenges are the same everywhere. We'll have speakers coming to our conference from the UK and the US. We differ in terms of size and scale, that gives us the ability to be more agile. Here we have the ability to test systems, that's not always the case overseas."

Tuesday, 10 May 2016

Herald NZ

Bill Bennett

New airline enters Kiwi market

Hong Kong Airlines will start daily services to Auckland in November, the latest in a growing number of carriers to serve New Zealand.

The service will further fuel the tourism boom, with the Chinese market the fastest growing of them all.

The full-service airline, will launch its first daily direct service to Auckland on November 10. It will use an Airbus A332 aircraft with 283 seats, including 24 business class seats.

Li Dianchun, chief commercial officer of Hong Kong Airlines, said, "With the success of our service to Australia earlier this year, Hong Kong Airlines is more than delighted to announce this second long haul service, operating daily to Auckland, New Zealand."

There had been a steady increase year on year in the number of Hong Kong and China travellers visiting New Zealand. According to official figures as of March 2016, the total number of visitors from Hong Kong and China has recorded a rise in 19.1 per cent and 27.8 per cent respectively.

In total about 380,000 Chinese come to New Zealand and within two years they are forecast to be the biggest spenders, ahead of the million-plus Australians who come here each year.

Established in 2006, Hong Kong Airlines is a full-service airline firmly rooted in Hong Kong with 30 destinations across Asia-Pacific.

The current operating fleet is made up of 30 Airbus aircraft with an average age of around 3.5 years, consisting of 25 passenger aircraft and five freighters.

The TRENZ travel event in Rotorua this week heard seven new airlines had started serving Auckland in the past year.

Grant Bradley

Aviation, tourism and energy writer for the Business Herald

Saturday, 14 May 2016