Jetstar's piles in NZ with fares from $21 while Air NZ allows unaccompanied children to fly again

Brian from New Lynn

The airline's return will be welcomed by travellers who had faced higher fares over the past six weeks as Air New Zealand was unable to fly with full planes. It comes as Air NZ says unaccompanied minors will be able to travel again - as will pets as checked bagged. Air NZ plans to operate around 55 percent of its usual domestic capacity (compared to pre-COVID-19 levels) from July and August. On Monday the airline began operating to all 20 of the domestic ports it previously flew to. Jetstar said it will operate 75 flights a week, about 60 per cent of its pre-Covid 19 schedule, now that we are resuming life in Level 1. Customers with bookings on the remaining 40 per cent of flights have been contacted and offered a range of options including credits for later journeys.Promotional fares include Auckland to Wellington from $21, Auckland to Christchurch from $21, Christchurch to Wellington from $32, Auckland to Dunedin from $45 and Auckland to Queenstown from $48. The airline said it will closely monitor demand, with further domestic flights likely to be added to the schedule in coming months. Jetstar group chief executive Gareth Evans said the airline was ''well and truly ready to take off''. "Passengers would notice a number of wellbeing initiatives as our flights resume, which have been developed based on best-practice medical advice and customer feedback, such as masks and sanitising wipes. "This is in addition to the measures we already have in place such as extra cleaning and Hepa filters on board which remove 99.9 per cent of all particles, including viruses.'' The airline was introducing more flexibility into bookings, enabling customers to book with greater confidence."
Jetstar's New Zealand domestic schedule from 1 July includes:
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• Auckland to Christchurch (24 weekly return flights)
• Auckland to Dunedin (3 return weekly flights)
• Auckland to Wellington (27 return weekly flights)
• Auckland to Queenstown (14 return weekly flights)
• Christchurch to Wellington (7 return weekly flights)
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The sale runs until Wednesday. The return of Jetstar comes as Air New Zealand expands its domestic network with flights to Timaru and Taupo resuming, and the airline building up to running at more than 55 per cent capacity. Across the Tasman Qantas and Jetstar are flying just 15 per cent of their normal domestic capacity as interstate restrictions remain tight. Air New Zealand General Manager Customer Experience Nikki Goodman said Alert Level 1 will mark a return to normal with regards to domestic flying. "Social distancing is no longer a requirement, unaccompanied minors will once again be able to travel domestically, and customers will be able to travel around New Zealand again with pets as checked baggage." Domestic lounges, with the exception of Auckland where renovations are underway, will reopen and hot food will be available again. Goodman asked people to be patient as the airline increased flights. "As we get back into more frequent flying, please be patient with us, as our contact centre and customer care teams continue to receive a high volume of enquiries. If your travel isn't urgent, we'd appreciate if you would wait to contact us so that those with imminent travel can be prioritised. We're thrilled to welcome more people on board, but please remember to be kind to our frontline employees – and if you are unwell or have Covid-19 symptoms please do not travel."
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