KEY POINTS:
Air New Zealand yesterday called on Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch airports to immediately drop their charges.
The airline is a consistent lobbyist for lower airport charges but yesterday used a drop in tourism numbers and a Singaporean initiative to strengthen its case.
"As global economies continue to tighten we all need to play our part in stimulating travel. Airports could assist in keeping fares lower by reducing landing fees during this economic downturn," deputy chief executive Norm Thompson said.
He said the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore was offering a 25 per cent landing fee rebate for airlines operating flights at Changi Airport - 10 per cent more than the rebate it was currently offering.
The costs of landing at Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch airports were excessive by international standards, he said.
Earlier this month Reserve Bank Governor Alan Bollard said that all sectors needed to do their part to ease inflationary pressures if interest rates were to fall further.
Thompson said in the past three months trans-tasman fares had been reduced by an average of 15 per cent, with some dropping by up to 45 per cent, while Pacific Island fares had fallen twice in the same period.
"Across the rest of the network we have dramatically increased the number of lowest available fares, including doubling the number of cheapest fares on our domestic services," he said. Any reductions by the airports would result in lower fares for customers.
Air New Zealand shares closed up 5c at 91c yesterday.
- NZPA
