SIA and Air NZ launch third daily flight to Singapore

Singapore Airlines (SIA) and Air New Zealand have officially entered a new chapter in their alliance partnership for the first time operating three daily flights between Auckland and Singapore.

The departure of SQ282 from Auckland Airport at 0115 this morning marked the start of the exciting new chapter which, along with the retiming of other flights, has delivered shorter connection times and improved connectivity through the Singapore hub to increasingly popular destinations in Asia, India and Europe.

As part of the joint venture alliance between the two flag carriers, SIA will operate two of the three daily flights between now and March next year, before Air New Zealand then operates two of the three daily services through October.

The addition of a third daily service has also boosted capacity on the Auckland-Singapore route by up to 40 per cent and added more than 165,000 seats annually between the two destinations.

Figures recently released by Statistics New Zealand demonstrate the significant growth in demand for both in-bound and out-bound travel through the country to Asia, India and Europe. Singapore Airlines General Manager New Zealand, Simon Turcotte, says three daily flights will help to meet this demand.

“We’re excited about the additional capacity and connectivity that having three daily flights offers to support both growing in-bound and out-bound travel,” Mr Turcotte says.

“In particular, we know that Kiwis are very interested in exploring more of Asia, India and Europe which are key destinations that will be supported by the improved connectivity provided by the third flight.

“We are very pleased that in close cooperation with our partners at Air New Zealand we have been able to deliver customers even more choice when it comes to travelling to and from New Zealand, and it is an excellent example of the benefits delivered by the Alliance partnership, which was recently renewed by the New Zealand Ministry of Transport.”

In the last year, more New Zealanders travelled to Asia – some of the most significant increases included Malaysia (15.0%), Indonesia (23.1%) and Thailand (8.6%). Passengers from New Zealand travelling to Europe increased by 8.4% and India also experienced notable growth from both in-bound (18.6%) and out-bound (9.1%) Kiwi travel[1].

The New Zealand Ministry of Transport extended the authorization of the Singapore Airlines and Air New Zealand joint venture alliance in early October, allowing the two flag carriers to extend their alliance for a further five years.

Since the launch of the alliance in January 2015, the two airlines have increased flight frequency on routes between Singapore and New Zealand, providing travellers with greater choice and convenience. This included a new Singapore-Wellington service via Australia in 2016, along with increased peak season services to Christchurch. Over this period, and with the addition of the third daily service, the alliance has increased seat capacity by around 55 per cent between Singapore and New Zealand.

During peak months, the airlines will jointly operate a total of 35 return services a week between Singapore and New Zealand, including services to Wellington and Christchurch.

The new third daily service will operate daily during the peak Northern Winter season (28 October 2018 – 30 March 2019), and five times per week during the Northern Summer season (31 March 2019 – 26 October 2019).

Singapore Airlines will operate a mix of Airbus A380s and Boeing 777-300ERs, depending on the season, while Air New Zealand will operate Boeing 787-9 aircraft.

* * *

New Flight Schedule

**Operated by a Boeing 777-300ER between April and October

© Scoop Media