Jobs go at Air NZ store

Five jobs will go at the Air New Zealand Holiday's shop in Hastings.

Five jobs will be lost with the closure of Air New Zealand Holidays' Hastings store.

Air New Zealand is closing 16 of its 22 stores by Monday and selling the remaining six, including its Napier store, to Australian stock exchange-listed company Helloworld.

An Air New Zealand spokesperson said the company's first priority for Hastings staff was to identify possible redeployment options within the company.

"Where this is not possible they are eligible for redundancy compensation."

The Air New Zealand board and senior executive team are in Hawke's Bay today, ahead of Jetstar's Auckland to Napier flights starting next Tuesday, which the Air New Zealand spokesperson said was "a regular, scheduled board meeting".

"Every year the board makes a point of meeting in the destinations we operate to," she said.

At the official opening of Napier Port's administration building yesterday Economic Development Minister Steven Joyce said he recommended regional New Zealand to Qantas CEO "and distant relation" Alan Joyce after he said Qantas had spare planes due to a decline in the mining industry.

The Minister said Qantas also saw good growth, and the potential for more, in regions such as Hawke's Bay.

"[Napier mayor] Bill tells me suddenly our friends in Air New Zealand are much more interested in Napier than they have been in the past, having a board meeting here tomorrow - all very exciting," he said.