“Cathay Pacific has been a valued Christchurch Airport partner since 2017, and this increase is another vote of confidence in our region.”
Christchurch Airport’s chief executive Justin Watson said the increased schedule means more choice for travellers and stronger connections to key international markets.
From cherries and live seafood to premium chilled meat, the extra belly freight capacity aims to help South Island produce reach dinner plates around the world.
Gordon Bevan, Christchurch Airport’s general manager aeronautical development, said the airline was delighted to expand its Christchurch operation.
“Adding another 13 return services and around 7000 extra seats is great news for South Islanders.
“It gives people more choice when they’re travelling and strengthens our link into Hong Kong and Cathay’s global network.
“We’ve seen demand for international travel continue to build and with Cathay’s joint venture with Air New Zealand, these extra flights make it even easier for people to get where they want to go.”
Extra services from December to February add 7000 more seats for travellers.
Cathay Pacific regional general manager, Southeast Asia & Oceania, Aldric Chau said the airline was “delighted” to expand its Christchurch operation in response to sustained customer demand.
“Every additional service creates more opportunities for our customers to connect seamlessly through Hong Kong to destinations across Asia, Europe and beyond.”
Air NZ starts new Christchurch routes to Tokyo, Singapore and Perth
The announcement comes less than two months after Air New Zealand revealed it would launch three new routes from Christchurch into Tokyo, Singapore and Perth.
Chief executive Nikhil Ravishankar said in May that the airline will start flying from Christchurch to three new international destinations at the end of October.
“For the first time since pre-Covid really, we can talk about growth, and where we’re going to deploy some of that growth,” Ravishankar told the Herald at the time.
“We’ve got 20 to 25% growth in our wide-body long-haul flying coming into the airline over the next couple of years. And the first place we’ve chosen to deploy some of that growth is out of Christchurch.”
The airline last flew from Christchurch to Singapore in 2020, to Narita (Tokyo) in 2015 and to Perth in 2019.