Korean boosts Auckland flights

Korean Air will fly larger planes on its NZ routes over summer, doubling seating capacity. File photo / Supplied

A near-doubling of capacity during the summer by Korean Air will give the tourism industry a boost of more than $10 million, says Auckland Airport.

Korean Air will switch from Boeing 777-200 aircraft to the larger Boeing 747-400 and increase the number of flights between Auckland and Seoul from seven to 10 a week during December and January - raising total capacity from about 3500 seats to about 6600 seats a week.

The airline plans to then phase capacity back to present levels.

Auckland Airport general manager of aeronautical and commercial Glenn Wedlock said the capacity boost was another signal of strong positive demand from high-growth Asian markets for visiting New Zealand this summer.

The early capacity increase was great for the travel trade and consumer joint promotions recently launched in the market, Wedlock said.

"We have had a clear growth strategy for the Asian market, and Korean Air's increase in services is another demonstration of the commitment to our market.

"We've been working hard over the past three years to promote the opportunity, and specifically working alongside Tourism New Zealand and Korean Air to market New Zealand as a destination in Korea."

Short-term visitor arrivals from Korea dropped 12.1 per cent in the year ended September to 56,101 people, according to Statistics New Zealand.

Ministry of Economic Development research released this week showed total spending by visitors from Korea fell 12.1 per cent in the year ended September to $196 million.

Tourism NZ's general manager for Asia markets Mark Frood welcomed news of the increased capacity.

"This ... provides further opportunities for arrivals growth from our Korean market and also with Korean Airlines' European and wider Asian network connections."

Tourism NZ partnered with Korean Air and had just begun its latest campaign aimed at increasing visits for the New Zealand summer, he said.

"We are confident we will start seeing some growth reappear in the market, after what has been a tough year, and we are seeing positive signals from trade due to this increased capacity."