Air New Zealand given 24-hour extension to get Kiwis home from Queenstown

The New Zealand Government has extended the initial 48 hour grace period by 24 hours to allow Air New Zealand to fly Kiwis home from Queenstown.

The airline will operate seven services from Queenstown – Auckland and Queenstown – Wellington to ensure that customers in the resort town can get home safely for the remainder of the lockdown period.

Flights will be available shortly to book via the Air New Zealand website, and the schedule is as follows –

Chief Executive Officer Greg Foran said he is relieved that the Government has extended the grace period by an additional 24 hours.

“We said it on Tuesday, and we will say it again. Delivering Kiwis home safely during this period is our priority, so we are grateful that the Government has allowed us to do just that.

“Yesterday we added four additional services out of Queenstown for today, and they sold out within minutes. Queenstown is a popular holiday destination, so it’s no surprise to us that it’s where the pressure is coming from.”

“We estimate there is somewhere around 600 people requiring flights, so we are confident that the additional 700 seats tomorrow will ensure that there are options for those that need it. As always, we will continue to monitor the demand and adjust as needed”.

The Air New Zealand contact centre and social media team are currently experiencing very high demand, and the airline is grateful to customers for their patience while it works through these changes.

For the latest information, customers can check the Air New Zealand COVID-19 Hub and travel alerts page.