20 May 2013

Drop in Air NZ long-haul passenger numbers

1:59 pm on 20 May 2013

A sharp drop in demand and capacity on Air New Zealand's Asian routes has dragged down the overall number of long haul passengers flying with the airline in April.

The airline carried just over a million passengers in April, 2% more than the same month last year.

Short haul passenger numbers rose more than 3%, while long haul numbers fell 6.5%.

Demand and capacity on the Asia/Japan/UK routes fell by a quarter, due to fewer flights into Shanghai and withdrawal of Hong Kong-London flights.

Demand and capacity on the Tasman Pacific market rose by around 5%, reflecting extra flights on the Auckland-Honolulu route and a larger aircraft on the Auckland to Perth route.

Demand increased 9% on the North America/UK routes, while capacity rose 12%.