Air NZ predicts transtasman route shake-up

Air New Zealand is predicting a shake-up in the transtasman route after its attempt to share the load with rival airline Qantas was knocked back by a regulation watchdog.

Speaking in Istanbul at the Star Alliance meeting which yesterday welcomed aboard Turkish Airlines as its newest member, Air New Zealand chief executive Rob Fyfe said the airline might look to its low-cost operations to take up more flights to Australia.

About one million people fly each way across the Tasman with Air New Zealand grabbing around 35 per cent of the market with 120 flights weekly.

"You can't expect airlines to just go on losing money or making inadequate profits because everyone wanted to see competition," Mr Fyfe said. "Competition that loses money or destroys value is in no one's interest."

- AAP