Domestic air travel competition is hotting up more with Australia's Qantas today announcing a reintroduction of flights to Christchurch and a beef-up of its offering to business travellers.
Next month, when rival Australian airline Virgin Blue plans to begin main trunk operations here, Qantas plans to instigatea multi-million dollar investment in New Zealand domestic operations.
The airline is adding a fifth Boeing 737 aircraft to its domestic fleet. That will allow the resumption of a service to Christchurch, which was halted in March.
Regional general manager Grant Lilly said Qantas was targeting business customers through its Cityflyer brand that will give better food, complimentary newspapers and a free bar service from 4pm on weekdays.
Self-serve kiosks will allow faster check-ins.
The airline said it would spend $3 million upgrading its domestic club lounges in Auckland, Christchurch and Wellington.
Qantas did not say whether it intended to introduce its budget Jetstar brand here.
Air New Zealand has met the competition from Virgin with an aggressive scheme of discounted fares and last week revealed plans to upgrade its domestic service.
This will enhance its electronic check-in scheme and introduce radio frequency identification (RFID) tags to allow rapid check in of bags.
It also said it would give business and frequent fliers larger seat spaces.
