Auckland Airport needs to repair parts of the runway and nearby taxiways, and will build a new domestic jet terminal. Video / Auckland Airport
The British Airways-Qatar Airways joint business agreement has been extended for five more years and the refreshed deal now includes Spanish airline Iberia.
Acting Transport Minister James Meager at the weekend said the deal should benefit New Zealand travellers and tourists visiting from overseas.
“People will continue to benefit from more convenient flight schedules, better co-ordination when booking and checking in, access to the loyalty programmes of both airlines, and the ability to combine different fare classes,” Meager said.
He said the reauthorised agreement now includes Iberia.
British Airways and Iberia are both part of London-headquartered International Airlines Group.
They and Qatar are part of the oneworld global airline alliance, which includes Qantas and is a rival to Star Alliance, which includes Air New Zealand.
British Airways has said its partnerships with Iberia and Qatar Airways allow for smoother connections and more integrated customer support. Photo / Sundry Photography
Meager said including Iberia should provide connectivity and capacity between New Zealand and the United Kingdom, and other European destinations.
The joint business agreement has been authorised until May 31, 2030.
The new Civil Aviation Act took effect on Saturday.
Meager said the act had a better process for authorising airline co-operation agreements.
“Proposed decisions will be published and open for consultation before a final decision is made, ensuring transparency over the whole process,” he said.
“The new act also provides the ability for more on-time performance reporting for airlines and price transparency mechanisms.”
Consumer NZ chief executive Jon Duffy said helping more airlines connect to New Zealand increased competition on international routes and gave consumers more choice.
“Unfortunately for domestic travellers, competition within New Zealand remains weak with monopolies on many routes, something we think the Government should be looking at more closely,” Duffy said.
Consumer NZ is urging Meager to push airlines to give flyers more information about their rights under the Civil Aviation Act.
The consumer group said recent amendments to the act gave the minister the power to make regulations requiring aviation industry participants to provide that information.
“We’ve written to the minister and told him we’re concerned airlines are not currently required to tell people about their rights under the CAA.”
In other changes to the law, Meager said as drones continued to develop, changes would enable policies and rules to be updated more quickly, to encourage more innovation and investment.
He also said aviation safety and security would get a boost from random drug and alcohol testing for people involved in safety-sensitive work, and AvSec officers will have clearer powers to keep travellers safe.
