Air New Zealand has announced a new start date for its long-awaited Auckland to New York flights.
The first ever non-stop service between New Zealand and New York will depart on September 17, landing at John F. Kennedy Airport.
The flights, which will be numbered NZ1 and NZ2, will be among the longest in the world, taking just over 16 hours to New York and 17-and-a-half hours for the return journey.
Air New Zealand will operate the route three times a week, year-round, using the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner.
Details of the service were first revealed in late 2019, with the maiden voyage supposed to take off on October 29, 2020.
In early 2020, the airline had been selling tickets for as little as $847 one-way from Auckland to New York.
However, the launch was postponed indefinitely due to the pandemic, with much of Air New Zealand’s international fleet grounded in the Californian desert.
Air New Zealand chief executive officer Greg Foran said with the New Zealand border reopening on May 2 to tourists from visa-waiver countries, this was the moment they had been waiting for.
“New York is an iconic yet familiar city, a bucket list item. And now for the first time, Kiwis can visit the city of all cities with a non-stop flight,” he said.
”New Zealand lets you slow down – in New York, everything is bigger and faster, it’s exciting and awe-inspiring – and it’s now closer than ever.”
The service will depart Auckland at 7.40pm, arriving in New York at 7.55pm. The return journey will depart at 9.55pm, arriving in New Zealand at 7.30am two days later due to the 17-hour time difference.
It will operate on Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
Air New Zealand’s partnership with United Airlines meant there would be connections available to destinations throughout the US, as well as Canada and the UK.
Customers would also be able to fly direct from New York to European destinations like Frankfurt, Munich, Zurich, Vienna, Brussels, Helsinki, Copenhagen and Stockholm.
New York will be Air New Zealand’s seventh US destination, and adds to a list of 24 international routes that Air New Zealand plans to relaunch as the borders reopen to tourists.
The Auckland to Singapore route is the first big long-haul restart, with flights set to resume on March 27.
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