Japanese charter visitors set to double

6 September 2013

Japanese charter visitors set to double

Air New Zealand’s 2013/2014 Japanese charter programme is set to bring more than double the number of Japanese visitors to New Zealand this summer compared to the previous year’s programme.

Between December and March the airline will operate 29 charter services to New Zealand from eight Japanese cities, bringing around 6,000 Japanese visitors to experience the key tourist regions across the country, in comparison to 14 services carrying 2,800 visitors last summer.

Twenty two of the flights will operate direct into Christchurch, providing an important economic boost to the Canterbury region. The remainder will fly direct to Auckland and all 29 flights will depart New Zealand from Auckland International Airport.

Air New Zealand’s Deputy Chief Executive Officer and Acting Chief Sales Officer, Norm Thompson, says Japan is New Zealand’s fifth largest source of inbound visitors.

“Japan continues to be a hugely important market for us and it’s really encouraging to see such good year on year growth from the region. With direct flights scheduled from eight Japanese ports these visitors will enjoy a seamless journey without needing to travel via the main gateways and we look forward to giving them a uniquely Kiwi experience from the moment they board our aircraft.”

Air New Zealand has worked in partnership with the management of both Auckland and Christchurch airports to develop this year’s Japan charter programme.
The charter programme will be operated by a Boeing 767-300ER aircraft. The first of the 29 flights will depart Osaka on 15 December this year and the final flight will return to Japan from Auckland on the 30 March.

Scheduled services for the 2013/2014 charter season are as follows:

About Star Alliance
Air New Zealand is proud to be a member of Star Alliance. The Star Alliance network was established in 1997 as the first truly global airline alliance to offer worldwide reach, recognition and seamless service to the international traveller. Its acceptance by the market has been recognised by numerous awards, including the Air Transport World Market Leadership Award and Best Airline Alliance by both Business Traveller Magazine and Skytrax. The member airlines are: Adria Airways, Aegean Airlines, Air Canada, Air China, Air New Zealand, ANA, Asiana Airlines, Austrian, Avianca, Brussels Airlines, Copa Airlines, Croatia Airlines, EGYPTAIR, Ethiopian Airlines, EVA Air, LOT Polish Airlines, Lufthansa, Scandinavian Airlines, Shenzhen Airlines, Singapore Airlines, South African Airways, SWISS, TAM Airlines, TAP Portugal, Turkish Airlines, THAI, United and US Airways. Overall, the Star Alliance network offers more than 21,900 daily flights to 1,328 airports in 195 countries.

For more information about Air New Zealand visit www.airnewzealand.com and for more information about Star Alliance visit www.staralliance.com

ENDS

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