NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather forecasts

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
    • The Great NZ Road Trip
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
    • Cooking the Books
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • What the Actual
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Business / Companies / Airlines

Air NZ long-haul review aims to stop $1 million a week losses

Owen Hembry
By Owen Hembry
Online Business Editor·NZ Herald·
25 Aug, 2011 05:30 PM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Air NZ has prepared for extra capacity during the Rugby World Cup. Photo / Natalie Slade

Air NZ has prepared for extra capacity during the Rugby World Cup. Photo / Natalie Slade

Air New Zealand is reviewing the long-haul routes bleeding more than $1 million a week and expects to make changes by the end of the year.

The NZX-listed airline yesterday posted normalised earnings before tax for the year ended June 30, down 45 per cent on the previous year at $75 million - although it predicted a better financial performance in the current year.

The airline has prepared plenty of extra capacity for the Rugby World Cup, with 95,000 visitors expected during the tournament.

Chief executive Rob Fyfe said the operating conditions of the past six months had been the most difficult the airline had faced in a decade.

Air New Zealand's international long-haul network continued to struggle against the backdrop of high jet fuel prices and a rising Kiwi dollar stifling inbound tourism demand from key markets like the United States and United Kingdom, which also continued to experience tough economic conditions, Fyfe said.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"International markets remain volatile and this has an impact on the demand for New Zealand as a destination," he said.

"This has seen long-haul routes in our network lose more than $1 million a week in the first six months of this calendar year.

"No stone will be left unturned as we rigorously review our business model, the routes where our capacity should be deployed, our sales and marketing strategy and alliance partner opportunities."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

A process of change would start before Christmas, Fyfe said.

The combination of reduced demand for travel as a result of the devastating Christchurch and Japan earthquakes, extra capacity into Christchurch to help the relief effort and compassionate fares had resulted in an estimated $70 million negative impact on earnings, he said.

Short-haul markets had shown strong performance throughout the period with passenger demand up 9.3 per cent on the back of a 5.5 per cent rise in capacity, Fyfe said.

"One of the key initiatives was the introduction of our 'seats to suit' initiative on the Tasman where we now offer a broader range of products to compete more effectively with the diverse competitors that we fly up against on those routes," he said.

Discover more

Personal Finance

Air New Zealand prepares for bond sale

19 Aug 05:30 PM
Airlines

Air NZ passenger numbers bolstered by domestic flights

23 Aug 05:25 AM
Airlines

Air NZ profits hit hard by quakes

24 Aug 09:00 PM
Airlines

Air NZ takes $70m earthquake hit

24 Aug 10:00 PM

"The Tasman now, [and] it's not often I can say this, is making a positive contribution to the airlines profitability."

A transtasman alliance with Virgin Australia started on July 26.

"The positive customer feedback so far is encouraging and we look forward to the resulting financial benefit as we progress through 2012 and longer term."

In the absence of further deterioration in global economic conditions and an escalation in fuel prices the company expected a better financial performance in the 2012 financial year.

Air New Zealand's shares closed down 2c yesterday at $1.09.

Goldman Sachs head of research Marcus Curley said: "It is a situation where the result itself underplays the profitability of the business given that they did battle against pretty significant headwinds, with the earthquakes in particular.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"Once demand levels normalise and you start to see some benefits from both the product developments, the alliance with Virgin and greater fuel efficiencies with the new aircraft you should see the profitability substantially higher than where it is at the moment," Curley said.

"The long-term question is whether that's actually high enough and what more needs to be done to improve the returns."

Chairman John Palmer said the natural disasters and sustained high fuel prices had dramatically altered what had been shaping up to be a positive full-year result.

"Nevertheless, this backdrop of adversity has again highlighted the resilience of Air New Zealand in the most challenging of times," Palmer said.

International financial markets were incredibly uncertain, he said. "The effect of that in all consumer areas where we fly internationally is that confidence is low and hence the prospects are clouding our view about what is possible."

The company was contemplating a bond issue of about $150 million, with an announcement expected shortly.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"Despite our strong balance sheet, we think that the opportunity to diversify our funding - particularly given the state of international financial markets - may well be timely."

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Airlines

Premium
Business|companies

Emirates Group announces record $10.5b gross profit

08 May 09:57 PM
Airlines

Wellington Airport boosts income but faces festering fleet problems

08 May 05:02 AM
Business|companies

Greg Foran says NZ too slow out of the blocks with tourism

07 May 09:31 PM

One tiny baby’s fight to survive

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Airlines

Premium
Emirates Group announces record $10.5b gross profit

Emirates Group announces record $10.5b gross profit

08 May 09:57 PM

Group invested billions in new aircraft, infrastructure and technology.

Wellington Airport boosts income but faces festering fleet problems

Wellington Airport boosts income but faces festering fleet problems

08 May 05:02 AM
Greg Foran says NZ too slow out of the blocks with tourism

Greg Foran says NZ too slow out of the blocks with tourism

07 May 09:31 PM
Premium
Airfares: Commerce Commission explains why it doesn’t want a competition study, but tells airlines to watch out

Airfares: Commerce Commission explains why it doesn’t want a competition study, but tells airlines to watch out

07 May 06:02 AM
Connected workers are safer workers 
sponsored

Connected workers are safer workers 

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • What the Actual
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven CarGuide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP