Air Canada returning to New Zealand next summer

Air Canada used a Boeing 787 Dreamliner on its flights in the 2019-20 summer. Photo / Supplied

Air Canada will return to New Zealand next summer, saying it wants to meet pent-up demand for long haul travel.

The airline will fly between Vancouver and Auckland three times a week as part of an accelerated expansion in this region as borders reopen.

The return of the airline will be a big boost to the tourism and travel sector and seen as a vote of confidence in the New Zealand market which is opening up to foreign travellers who won't have to self-isolate on arrival, starting with Australians next month.

Mark Galardo, senior vice president, network planning and revenue management at Air Canada, said the airline was solidifying its position as the airline providing the most services between Canada and the South Pacific.

''We are accelerating the restoration of our Australian and New Zealand routes to respond to pent-up travel between our countries as borders reopen,'' he said.

"Our restored South Pacific flights and vast North American network will support local tourism and hospitality sectors.''

To the end of September in 2019 the number of arrivals to New Zealand from Canada was up 6.5 per cent to 74,000 from the previous year, and Canadian tourists are generally high-spending, and stay long periods and travel to the regions.

The airline is also returning to Sydney and Brisbane.

Air Canada started services to New Zealand using a Boeing 787-Dreamliner in late 2019, just before the pandemic hit. It operated some freight flights last year but then redeployed its aircraft on routes where passenger services had been restored and there were better commercial opportunities.

Galardo said Vancouver offered seamless connections through in-transit pre-clearance facilities through to its extensive North American network.

The Canadian airline - which has former Air NZ boss Rob Fyfe on its board - flew a four times-a week service between Auckland and Vancouver in the pre-Covid summer. Like Air New Zealand, it is a member of the Star Alliance of airlines and had been growing quickly and upgrading its fleet before the pandemic.

Air Canada, like other airlines, is fighting back from the financial hit from the last two years and is rebuilding its network. By the end of last year it served 118 cities, up from 70 at the start of the year.

The average number of daily flights rose to 665 in December 2021 from 245 in January 2021.

Yesterday Qantas announced it was re-entering the Tasman with more than its existing skeleton service.

In response to the border announcement it said Qantas and Jetstar trans-Tasman services would increase to 30 return flights a week "initially'' as New Zealand opens up to vaccinated travellers from April 13.

Qantas will fly daily from Auckland to Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney, and Christchurch to Sydney with a mix of its Boeing 737s and its popular wide-body Airbus A330 aircraft.

Jetstar will operate three weekly flights from Auckland to the Gold Coast using its Airbus A320 aircraft.

Both airlines will further increase flights during May and June, and resume flights to Australia from Queenstown and Wellington.