This was published 1 year ago
Qantas takes aim at Air NZ over New York flights: We'll have 'more room and fewer seats'
By Brook Sabin
Qantas will compete directly with Air New Zealand on the Auckland to New York route.Credit: iStock
Air New Zealand's arch-rival Qantas has taken a thinly veiled jab at the national carrier's continued problems on its New York service, saying its planes have "more room and fewer seats."
New Zealand's national carrier started services to the Big Apple last week, and next year Qantas will compete directly on the Auckland to New York route.
However, Air New Zealand has had a turbulent start after "stronger than usual" headwinds led to 65 passenger bags being offloaded on the first flight home. On another flight, passengers were told they'd need to divert to Nadi to refuel - however, this was avoided after pilots were able to reroute the plane mid-flight. It wasn't before an A321 ghost flight with relief crew was flown all the way to Fiji, only to return less than an hour later. The plane ended up flying a six-hour return trip for no reason.
Just like Air New Zealand, Qantas will use a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner on the New York flights, albeit with less seats.Credit: James Morgan/Getty
What raises the stakes between the two airlines is they are using the exact same aircraft on the route - a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner. The 14,200 kilometre journey is nearing the upper limit of the aircraft's range.
Qantas was asked directly by Stuff Travel if the airline would need to offload passengers, fly without bags or limit passenger loads on the route. In response, the airline referenced its current ultra-long haul routes, such as Sydney to Rome and Perth to London, which are longer than Auckland to New York.
Qantas' economy cabin on the Dreamliner 787-9.Credit: Brent Winstone
A spokesperson said: "Customer feedback on our direct London and Rome services show how well suited our Dreamliner cabins are to longer international flights like these, which is helped by the fact we designed them with more room and fewer seats than most of our competitors."
If you dissect that carefully crafted response, it's a direct jab at Air New Zealand's problems.
The national carrier's 787s are currently too heavy when fully loaded to make the return journey, which has a prevailing headwind. For that reason, the airline initially opted to do the return trip without cargo and had a limit of 215 passengers. After a nightmare start to its services, the carrier has now reduced the maximum number of passengers on the flight to 180 – despite having 275 seats.
However, Qantas has a headstart: it's already flying roomier Dreamliners with only 236 seats - which means the aircraft is lighter and uses less fuel. Air New Zealand is set to introduce a more spacious Dreamliner from 2024, with 227 seats and six Skynest bunks.
But, interestingly, given the opportunity to provide a steadfast guarantee that it won't have any disruptions on its New York route, Qantas fell short.
And that might be because it too has had teething problems on new services. In 2011, the airline was forced to divert to Noumea to refuel on its new Dallas to Brisbane route.
The proof will be in the pudding (served 35,000 feet in the sky) when both airlines start directly competing on the route next year.
See also: 16 hours non-stop: Qantas announces new New York route
See also: Air NZ to install bunk beds for economy class passengers
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