Freedom Air Website To Carry Budget Domestic Fares

Freedom Air Website To Carry Budget Domestic Fares From June 1

Freedom Air today announced it will funnel huge demand for its domestic services through its website, taking pressure off its call centre and allowing the airline to keep costs down. From June 1, the cheapest fares will be available online only. The airline will also introduce advance purchase conditions on some of its higher fare levels in order to help manage customer flows.

“Demand has been phenomenal and we are delighted with the way New Zealanders have embraced our friendly, no-fuss kiwi service, “ says Wayne Dodge, Freedom Air general manager/vice-president.

“However, the sheer numbers of calls flooding into our call centre mean some customers are experiencing delays. Booking online will allow people to easily access the cheapest fares and make their own travel arrangements quickly and effectively. Advance purchase conditions on some of the other fare levels will also encourage people to book early and help us manager customer numbers.”

Dodge says value-based airlines are all about delivering safe, reliable, friendly service at an affordable price, as well as being vigilant on costs. In view of this, Freedom Air has decided online bookings are the best way to go.

“Freedom Air is conscious of keeping costs down in the face of exceptional pressure on its resources,” says Dodge. “The internet is a cost-effective way for Freedom Air to collect bookings. We believe that channelling more bookings through the website will help us manage demand and reduce processing costs,” he says.

Freedom Air has been deluged with calls and bookings since launching its Auckland/Wellington/Christchurch services on May 1. As of early this week (May 29) 40,000 people had booked domestic flights and 15,000 domestic passengers had flown with the airline. The airline has now doubled its call centre staff to handle telephone bookings.

The airline also this week introduced a second aircraft to service domestic routes. The Boeing 737-300, which started operating Wednesday (May 30), more than doubled the airline’s domestic capacity.

From tomorrow, customers will need to go to www.freedomair.com to access Freedom Air ’s lowest fares. These start from $150 Auckland/Wellington return, $139 Wellington/Christchurch return and $178 Auckland/Christchurch return.

Customers who book through the Freedom Air reservations centre on 0800 600 500 will move to the next fare level, starting from $169 Auckland/Wellington return, $159 Wellington/Christchurch return and $199 Auckland/Christchurch return. Advance purchase conditions, ranging from three days to 14 days will also apply on fare levels above these start prices.

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Freedom Air started operating as a trans-Tasman carrier in November 1995, offering value-based services. Over the years, it has refined its no-frills service to continually pass savings on to customers.

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