Air New Zealand has added an additional daily service between Kerikeri and Wellington to help connect Northland to the rest of the country. The airline will run a direct daily service between Kerikeri and the capital using its Q300 turboprop fleet, which will be in addition to the daily service currently operating between Auckland and Whangarei. Air New Zealand Chief Customer and Sales Officer Leanne Geraghty says that while Auckland is at Alert Level 3 and above, these services will operate to enable a direct link to Northland from another port. “We want to help keep our northern neighbours connected to the rest of the country. With transit rules through different Alert Level regions limiting domestic leisure travel, this service will go a long way in supporting Northland and its local economy and community. “At this stage, the flights are available from 13 September through to 21 September. We will of course look to extend this should Auckland stay in Alert Level 3 or above for longer.” Northland Mayor John Carter says “we are delighted that Air New Zealand is connecting the Far North and Northland with the rest of New Zealand by setting up a temporary flight between Kerikeri and Wellington. This means that people will be able to travel safely between Alert Levels two regions. “We look forward to visitors from across the nation coming north to enjoy our hospitality which of course will help our businesses and as a consequence, will benefit all Northlanders.” The schedule for the Wellington – Kerikeri flights between 13 September – 21 September is as follows:
WLG - KKE 1030 1210
KKE-WLG 1315 1455
Source : Air New Zealand Press Release
Listening to the radio today, they asked why Air NZ couldn't fly out of Hamilton for the upper North Island... Apparently they (Air NZ and the Northland district) did look into it but there were some technical stuff that prevented them (interested to know what those technical stuff would be...? Aviation related or covid related being proximity to Auckland and potential for those on the border slipping in)
ReplyDeleteWonder if Origin, if they had spare capacity could nip in, be it a tag on to their current Hamilton service or a standalone service and offer flights from Hamilton to Whangarei, Kerikeri or even Kaitaia (Barrier Air even although I could imagine that might be seen as a stretch too far, a long flight in the Caravan for some) There must be a good population base/demand from the Hamilton region stretching to the BOP during this current covid situation and the very much reduced capacity from Air NZ....? A perfect fit for a 19 seat aircraft and with it... Offering a bit more frequency, albeit a brief service until things go back to normal.
Looking at the Flight Times. The flights are interpeak, so guess the plane would have been sitting in WLG for that time. Don't think HLZ has planes sitting around like that. Also WLG would likely have a bigger crew base than HLZ to pull crew from, so less dead heading around the country and easier from crew to start and end their day at home.
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