Qantas, Air New Zealand sign new codeshare agreement

New Zealand and Australia’s biggest airliners have partnered up, signing a new codeshare agreement in the aim of easing domestic travel for customers within the region.

The partnership between Qantas and Air New Zealand will provide customers of the companies with shorter connection times, allowing for faster more efficient travel.

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“Our relationship with Air New Zealand goes back almost 80 years. We’ve been partners at various stages over that time and we have a lot of respect for them as a competitor,” said Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce.

“A codeshare deal on our domestic networks makes sense for customers because it leverages the strengths we each have in our home markets.”

The agreement will cover 115 domestic routes across Australia and New Zealand, with Qantas adding its own code to 30 routes on Air New Zealand’s network, whilst Air New Zealand will add 85 routes on Qantas’ network.

“While the two airlines will continue to compete very strongly across all markets, Air New Zealand and Qantas are known for having a commitment to innovation, customer service excellence, operational performance and safety,” said Air New Zealand CEO Christopher Luxon.

“We are confident that our respective customers will enjoy the reciprocal benefits on both sides of the Tasman.”

The services are expected to become available by the end of July for travel on Qantas and Air New Zealand beginning 28 October 2018.

The announcement comes just two months after Air New Zealand ended its Tasman Sea flight sharing agreement with Virgin Australia.