Qantas unveils new player in transtasman battle

The Boeing 737-800 is 10 per cent more efficient. This plane has been named after New Zealander Jean Batten. Photo / Sarah Ivey

Qantas has publicly unveiled its long-awaited new transtasman aircraft, adding more capacity and frequency to the highly competitive route.

The airline will have three new generation Boeing 737-800s by mid-October that will initially fly on the Auckland-Sydney and Auckland-Melbourne routes.

Compared with its existing 737s, the new aircraft will roughly carry 10 per cent more passengers and fly 10 per cent higher and faster. Importantly for yield, they are 10 per cent more efficient.

Qantas regional manager New Zealand Grant Lilly said three more aircraft would be added to the fleet by 2011. The airline currently flies the route with domestic configured 737s and larger 767s.

"We think for the Tasman the way to go is smaller jets with higher frequency."

The aircraft has 12 business class and 156 economy seats, all with new entertainment-on-demand screens.

Lilly said the new planes would allow the airline to differentiate itself from budget carriers and others at the top end of the market.

"Within the full service carriers you're seeing differentiation with us using this top drawer product using a smaller aeroplane."

Air New Zealand has been reducing capacity and the size of its aircraft on the route on which it says it has lost tens of millions of dollars.

Lilly said competition was intense and he could not see fares falling much further.

"It's fantastic buying [but] is it sustainable? I don't think many airlines are making a lot of money these days so probably not. It's going to be interesting how it all plays out over the next year or two." Gilpin Travel managing director Keith Sumner said the new aircraft allowed Qantas to play catch-up.

"Qantas has been the poor cousin for business options. They've now got the right products to play the game."

House of Travel retail director Brent Thomas said Qantas was putting on new aircraft at a good time. The transtasman route had in August shown further growth.

"Customers will see a benefit from travelling on a new plane. Will it be influential? I would suggest frequency, pricing and performance are the big issues."