Article from BTNews 16 MAY 2016
Hong Kong adds NZ daily
Daily services to Auckland are being launched next winter by Hong Kong Airlines as the number of carriers serving New Zealand continues to grow.
The Chinese market is the fastest-growing for travel to the country and the airline is responding by operating a daily direct service from 10 November.
It will use a two-cabin Airbus A332 seating 283 passengers including 24 in Business Class. Seven new carriers have begun serving Auckand in the past year.
Chief commercial officer Li Dianchun said: “With the success of our service to Australia earlier this year, Hong Kong Airlines is more than delighted to announce this second long-haul service."
The number of Hong Kong and China travellers visiting New Zealand has shown a steady year-on-year increase, Hong Kong by 19.1% and China by 27.8%.
About 380,000 Chinese a year are now travelling to New Zealand and within two years are forecast to be the biggest spenders, ahead of the annual million-plus Australian visitors.
Hong Kong Airlines was established in 2006 and serves 30 destinations across Asia-Pacific.
Its current operating fleet is made up of 30 Airbus aircraft with an average age of around 3.5 years, consisting of 25 passenger aircraft and five freighters.
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