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Air New Zealand is considering flying Boeing 737 jets into Invercargill, Hamilton and Palmerston North, and expanding the use of the aircraft into Dunedin.
The 737s have more seats than the turbo-prop planes the company flies into those cities.
Group general manager short haul airlines Bruce Parton yesterday said discussions about the potential new services were starting with airports and local authorities.
At the same time, Air New Zealand was securing two more 737 series aircraft to enable it to offer prime-time jet services to at least two of the provincial centres, he said.
The extra aircraft would take Air New Zealand's fleet to 18 dedicated domestic 737 aircraft, compared with 14 aircraft being operated only a few months ago.
Parton said a decision on which cities would be offered the six-month jet trials would be based on customer demand and the level of support that could be gained from the regions.
Jet services will be tried for six months to gauge demand and assess sustainability, he said.
- NZPA
