TRAVEL
Air New Zealand Launching 17-Hour Non-Stop Flight
Source: Air New Zealand
Now that New Zealand has announced they will reopen to tourism, Air New Zealand is making it easier for Americans to visit the island nation courtesy of a 17-hour non-stop flight from New York’s JFK airport to Auckland.
The airline had originally announced plans to launch the JFK/Auckland route back in 2019, however, thanks to the coronavirus pandemic, those plans were delayed.
Taxiing our way to the Big Apple 😉🚕 Fly non-stop between Auckland and New York, departing 17 September 2022. On sale now! 🎉✈️🇺🇸
— Air New Zealand ✈️ (@FlyAirNZ) March 22, 2022
Subject to government and regulatory requirements. pic.twitter.com/kHZuAT8hOs
But now the airline is finally launching the non-stop flight, which will run three times per week, aboard a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner. And with a flight time of approximately 17.5 hours, the JFK/Auckland route will be the fourth-longest flight in the world.
“The U.S. has always been a key market for us, and this new route cements our commitment to growing opportunities for tourism between the two countries,” Air New Zealand CEO Greg Foran said in a news release Tuesday. “In the six years leading up to COVID, the U.S. visitor numbers to New Zealand doubled so we expect our much-awaited non-stop service to be incredibly strong year-round.”
