\u201cAustralia already publishes regular information on fares, capacity and airline competition, providing a model New Zealand can adapt.\u201d<\/p>\n
NZ Airports said it wanted regular analysis, with special attention to routes a single airline served.<\/p>\n
\u201cComparable reporting would account for factors such as booking timing, route mix and fare conditions,\u201d the association said.<\/p>\n
\u201cNew Zealand is a small market with long, thin routes, and that shapes what any airline can sustain commercially,\u201d NZ Airports chief executive Graeme Sharman said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe question is whether the public can see enough to know how well the system is working.\u201d<\/p>\n
NZ Airports also called for a \u201cpredictable, evidence-based airport regulation framework\u201d.<\/p>\n
There are ongoing disputes between airlines and major airports over how much airports should be regulated, and how much airlines should contribute to major airport capital projects.<\/p>\n
NZ Airports also said all political parties should aim to keep visitor settings competitive and support commercially sustainable international air services.<\/p>\n
And it said politicians must pay attention to regional routes<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cFor many regional communities, aviation is essential infrastructure rather than a discretionary service. Better evidence will help government identify where connectivity is under pressure and consider proportionate action before important services are lost.\u201d<\/p>\n Fake agents <\/p>\n Meanwhile, the travel agents\u2019 association is warning of a rise in AI slop and scams targeting travellers.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s only going to get worse, especially around the deep AI,\u201d TAANZ chief executive Julie White told the Herald.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat you can\u2019t fake is when you\u2019re sitting or standing in front of someone.\u201d<\/p>\n She said scams were especially targeting older people who were very active on Facebook.<\/p>\n TAANZ said this year\u2019s election presented a chance to broaden the national conversation about accredited travel advisers.<\/p>\n \u201cJust as government invests in transport and digital connectivity, the accredited advisor network is infrastructure that keeps travel spending safe, local, and accountable and it deserves to be treated as such in policy, not just referenced in passing.\u201d<\/p>\n It wanted the Government to promote \u201cTAANZ-Accreditation\u201d to indicate where a travel adviser was legitimate and accountable.<\/p>\n TAANZ also wanted an aviation consumer charter, modelled on an Australian customer rights charter.<\/p>\n It said that would mean passengers were clearly told about their rights when a flight was delayed, cancelled, or disrupted.<\/p>\n \u201cIf an airline has cancelled your flight or something has gone wrong, the airline should be explaining your rights clearly,\u201d White said.<\/p>\n \u201cIt shouldn\u2019t be left to the travel advisor to try and work it out for the customer.\u201d<\/p>\n Consumer NZ is calling for regulations to ensure passengers were told about their rights in case of delays or cancellations.<\/p>\n In June it launched a flight complaints portal for passengers.<\/p>\n It said more than 75% of travellers relied on airlines for information about their rights.<\/p>\n Consumer NZ at the time said its own research had shown nine out of 10 people were not fully aware of their flight rights.<\/p>\n Consumer NZ presented a petition to Parliament earlier this year, saying airlines should be made to tell passengers their rights when flights were disrupted.<\/p>\n The Board of Airline Representatives New Zealand (Barnz) told the Petitions Committee a spike of complaints inspiring the petition mostly happened when airline services restarted after the Covid pandemic.<\/p>\n Barnz said carriers had invested millions of dollars to overhaul digital customer interfaces and related tools.<\/p>\n The Aviation Industry Association (AIANZ) has pointed to information already available to passengers about their rights, such as that on the Air NZ website.<\/p>\n The AIANZ said it would be willing to engage with work on a voluntary charter on passengers\u2019 rights. <\/p>\n But it said its members would struggle to support such a charter if it added \u201cmore cost to an already fragile cost base\u201d.<\/p>\n