Summary
- Auckland Airport upgrade causes a rift between Air Recent Zealand and the airport authority, leaving customers in poor conditions.
- NZAA accuses Air Recent Zealand of driving up domestic travel costs, urging government intervention for transparency.
- Airline defends rising airfares as a result of operating costs and upcoming Auckland Airport redevelopment.
Everyone in Recent Zealand agrees that Auckland Airport must be upgraded, but that appears to be the one thing the 2 biggest players – the airport authority and Air Recent Zealand – can agree on. The airline says the plan is simply too grandiose and it can need to pay for it, and the airport says it’s what’s needed for the longer term of aviation within the country and it must get on with constructing it.
Where is that this all heading?
The times of civilized debate appear to have well passed and the ugly spat is beginning to border on the ridiculous, with either side showering tit-for-tat accusations on one another, leaving the actual customers in sub-standard conditions with poor outcomes.
Photo: inProgressImaging | Shutterstock
Yesterday, the NZ Airports Association (NZAA) threw its spanner into the works with a lengthy tirade against Air Recent Zealand, accusing it of driving up the price of domestic travel with monopolistic practices and adding to the price of living crisis faced by Kiwis.
The NZAA is looking for presidency intervention to observe domestic airfares and airline performance and provides consumers greater transparency amid record-high domestic airfares. Although fares have been trending downwards, data from Stats NZ shows that domestic airfares rose by 7.4% in February in comparison with January, with Air Recent Zealand CEO Greg Foran flagging on the half-year results briefing that cost increases would see fares rise in coming months.
Photo: Airbus
NZAA CEO Billie Moore said that the airline is just not only upping its fares but in addition increasing the value of add-ons similar to bag check and other ancillaries, like checking a pet, may be in line for a
“That is incredibly difficult for domestic and regional travellers. They’re already frustrated about how much they’re having to pay to fly, in addition to high cancellation rates for Air Recent Zealand in some regions.
“Air Recent Zealand is busy blaming Auckland Airport for cost increases when it’s their very own record-high domestic airfares and value add-ons which are driving up the price of domestic travel for consumers. Airport charges only make up a fraction of a ticket.”
The NZAA also cited data from Infare that Air Recent Zealand raised average domestic airfares by NZ$51 ($31) to NZ$200 ($122) per one-way airfare for the 12 months ending September 2023, a 34% rise from the previous 12 months. For its own reasons, it also quoted a regional return fare from Tauranga to Nelson
Air Recent Zealand has its say
The airline hit back yesterday, and in line with the said the Infare data quoted by the NZAA is incomplete and doesn’t include online and Grabaseat bookings.
Photo: Jordan Tan / Shutterstock
Air Recent Zealand GM Domestic Iain Walker said that in line with its own figures, February domestic fares rose by 2% year-on-year, which is below inflation and the increases in operating costs.
“That is why we’re taking steps to make sure our fares cover the price of travel so we are able to proceed to fly Kiwis across the country. It is also why we – and our competitor airlines – are so concerned concerning the Auckland Airport redevelopment, which is able to see charges increase from NZ$9 ($5.50) per domestic passenger today to NZ$46 ($28) in 2032.”
The NZAA also said that with Air Recent Zealand controlling 86% of the market, the country has the which seems a unprecedented claim to make just on a market share basis.
The association says Recent Zealand sits just ahead of Bolivia, Turkey, Argentina and Nepal when it comes to competitiveness and that the NZ government needs to establish an independent monitoring process
What do you’re thinking that of those airport-airline arguments? Tell us within the comments.