New ultra long-haul flight between Auckland and NYC
Air New Zealand is ramping up its long-haul game, announcing a direct 17-hour flight between Auckland and New York City.
The Air New Zealand flights will kick off from September 17th this year and will operate three times a week on a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft.
The flight from New Zealand’s flagship carrier is now one of the easiest ways for east coast Aussies to get to the east coast of the US.
The flying time from Brisbane or Sydney to Auckland is around three hours (Melbourne is three-and-a-half hours). Add on the new 17-hour flight to New York’s JFK Airport means you’ll spend around 20 hours in the air.
The new flight also means you won’t have to change in Los Angeles which is a common stopping point for flights from Australia to New York.
Air New Zealand CEO Greg Foran said the airline was “thrilled” to launch the new flight.
“New York is an iconic yet familiar city, a bucket list item. We’re thrilled to be able to offer our Australian customers more choice to get to North America, connecting onto our flagship Auckland to New York flights from our nine Australian ports,” he said.
“As an international service from start to finish, it’s a unique proposition and really is the easiest way to get to the Big Apple, on the world’s safest airline.”
Air New Zealand dethroned Qantas last year in the annual world’s safest airline competition from airline safety and review website AirlineRatings.com.
The Kiwi carrier was awarded the top spot due to its young fleet, technical innovation and the fact that its flight crews operate in some of the most challenging weather conditions and remote environments.
This new route is one of the longest in the world and Air NZ has been working to upgrade its cabin service so passengers don’t struggle throughout the lengthy trip.
“Customers have the choice to either connect directly onto their New York flight or arrive a few days early and explore everything Auckland has to offer,” Mr Foran said.
“We’ve worked hard over the last few years to make this ultra-long-haul service a reality – it’s one of the longest routes in the world.
Qantas also operates some of the longest passenger flights in the world with its direct service from Australia to London. While it initially flew from Perth, due to border closures in Western Australia through the pandemic, Qantas has been flying between Darwin and London at a flight time of over 17 hours.
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