Air NZ plans low fares for Tasman

A rejig of trans-Tasman and Pacific flights by Air New Zealand will heat up competition with cut-price fares, more seats and faster check-in.

Air New Zealand is reconfiguring flights to remove business class on the smaller A320 airplanes where demand was low.

Short haul airline general manager Bruce Parton said the changes would "slash" trans-Tasman airfares but would not say by how much until early next month.

However, he promised to set a "new standard" in low fares, hasten check-in and a new way of selling airfares, but again refused to elaborate.

All trans-Tasman and Pacific flights on the Airbus A320 would be economy only while business class would still be available out of Auckland on other aircraft.

"Unfortunately, demand for business class seats out of Wellington and Christchurch has been diminishing to the point where just one of the eight seats is being sold on average per flight," Mr Parton said.

Wellington International Airport chief executive Steve Fitzgerald said the changes could be an important step in generating even more travel between New Zealand and Australia.

The reconfiguration would add around 4.7 percent in capacity on the Tasman for Wellington, he said.

House of Travel retail director Brent Thomas said Air New Zealand tended to set the pace on the fiercely competitive trans-Tasman routes.

Christchurch would be the first market to receive the new product offering, with fares on sale from April 29 for travel late-August, before it goes on sale network-wide in early September with travel rolling out from late-November.

- © Fairfax NZ News