On September 17, the first-ever direct Air New Zealand aircraft to New York City touched down at JFK airport after spending 16 hours in the air.
The airline’s post-pandemic recovery has been greatly aided by the NZ2 service, which was initially announced in March. Its twin aircraft, NZ1, takes an alternate path in around 17.5 hours from JFK to Auckland.
“As one of the world’s greatest cities, Air New Zealand is proud to add the Big Apple to its list of 29 international destinations,” Air New Zealand CEO Greg Foran said in a statement, adding that the filght connects his two favorite cities in the world.
On July 31, 2022, New Zealand will once again be available to visitors from abroad.
It was always clear that the airline wanted to reserve a spot at JFK.
When the flights were announced earlier in 2022, Foran said “Traditionally, flight numbers 1 and 2 are used for an airline’s flagship route. And that’s what New York will be — our flagship route.”
In addition to New York, Air New Zealand flies to five other destinations in the United States, including San Francisco and Honolulu.
Passengers from New Zealand will find it simpler to connect to major locations in North America and Europe because New York is the airline’s first (and only) direct trip to the east coast.