Air New Zealand will launch non-stop flights to New York from September 17 this year with a three times weekly service.
Landing at John F. Kennedy Airport, the airline will operate its flagship Auckland-New York route with its Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner.
The new service further deepens the alliance between Air New Zealand and United Airlines.
Air New Zealand Chief Executive Officer Greg Foran said “New York is an iconic yet familiar city, a bucket list item. And now for the first time, Kiwis can visit the city of all cities with a non-stop flight.”
“The US has always been a key market for us, and this new route cements our commitment to developing growing tourism opportunities between the two countries. In the six years leading up to Covid, the US visitor numbers to New Zealand doubled, and looking at the average spend in New Zealand by US tourists, we estimate that this new route would contribute an additional NZ$65M per year to the local economy.
“Traditionally, flight numbers 1 and 2 are used for an airline’s flagship route. And that’s what New York will be – our flagship route.”
Those flight numbers did apply to the airline’s Auckland-LA-London route.
“We’ve worked incredibly hard over the last few years to make this ultra-long-haul service a reality – it’s one of the longest routes in the world, at just over 16 hours northbound and 17 and a half hours southbound. To ensure customers arrive in New York feeling refreshed, we’ve put a lot of thought into the onboard experience and teams are working around the clock to make sure this is a great flying experience,” Mr. Foran said.
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Passengers can also connect to United Airlines to domestic destinations across the US, Canada, and the United Kingdom.
For those wanting to explore more of Europe, thanks to Air New Zealand’s network of partnerships, customers can also fly direct from New York to Frankfurt, Munich, Zurich, Vienna, Brussels, Helsinki, Copenhagen, and Stockholm
The new service will also provide greater choice for travelers between New Zealand and North America, with Air New Zealand serving seven destinations in North America – Chicago, Honolulu, Houston, Los Angles, San Francisco, Vancouver – and soon – New York.
