Queenstown to get many more Australian flights

Queenstown's expansion as a gateway airport is growing with Air New Zealand announcing additions to its transtasman schedule for the resort town and Qantas starting an expanded service at the weekend.

Pacific Blue will also fly between Queenstown and Sydney twice a week from September.

Air New Zealand has announced a new weekly Brisbane summer service as part of a drive for more Australian tourists, according to deputy chief executive, Norm Thompson.

In particular, he said, Air New Zealand hoped to capitalise on the strong demand from Queenslanders with the direct summer service.

The airline would try a weekly Brisbane-Queenstown service in peak summer months (mid-December through to the end of January).

Queenstown was arguably New Zealand's fastest-growing destination for Australian visitors, as a result of continual increases in direct services across the Tasman, Thompson said.

The airline intended extending its Melbourne-Queenstown schedule, which operates once a week in December and January, through to the end of March. In addition it would continue to operate two trips a week on the Sydney-Queenstown route from mid-October to the end of November, where previously over this period there was a seasonal reduction to one trip a week.

Qantas boosted its capacity between Australian cities and Queenstown at the weekend, with direct flights from Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.

Regional general manager New Zealand and Pacific Islands Grant Lilly said Qantas now offered three weekly services between Sydney and Queenstown but for the winter season had expanded its network to include one weekly flight from both Melbourne and Brisbane as well.

Qantas had also increased Sydney-Auckland services from four to five daily and Melbourne-Auckland services from three to four.