Air New Zealand has branded its alliance with Virgin Australia as a “tremendously effective” venture that has seen its Australian passenger numbers treble since July last year.
In the 12 months since the alliance was formed, Air New Zealand has seen its passenger numbers increase from 100 to 300 Australian passengers each day.
It has also increased frequency and loads on all trans Tasman routes, and significantly improved connections throughout Australia.
Delivering the glowing review at the Aviation Outlook conference in Sydney yesterday, Air New Zealand chief financial officer Rob McDonald said the strategy has proven to be a great success.
“The alliance has allowed us to extend our footprint into Australia [which] has been a good strategy, and we are pleased with where we are going,” he said.
The tie up has also been instrumental for Air New Zealand to adjust to high oil prices, McDonald added.
However, he warned a number of threats are looming over the New Zealand aviation industry, such as price increases from New Zealand airports and ineffective regulation.
“Passenger taxes are also making an appearance and unfocused development of airports is creating projects that just don’t succeed,” he said.
McDonald also singled out rising oil prices as a significant hurdle for the global aviation industry, but added that
airlines would eventually adjust to the conditions.
