AIR - Air NZ.

[Beagle]

https://www.nbr.co.nz/article/air-nz...urst-cs-213950

Nice work Mr Carter.

Hear hear. Good to see Jones being put in his place.

[peat]

If Jones is only 'expressing an opinion' then he shouldn't express it in the imperative. He was reported saying 'Dont shut down regional links' and as such it can only have been interpreted as a threat.
But despite us all agreeing about commercial independence there is always a point where being the National Flag Holder (which provides some benefits such as implicit govt guarantee) also incurs some responsibilities.

Remember Air NZ pulled out of Whanganui less than two years ago and so the West Coast of the Nth Is. would appear to be taking a hammering from this habit of culling the regions. If serving marginal links is considered a social service then it would be good to see innovative ways of achieving this.

[Beagle]

Its been widely reported Peat that Wanganui residents were driving the short distance to Palmerston North to pick up the dirt cheap fares offered by Jet Star. Its really not that far. There are considerable benefits in terms of driving and commute time to living and working in small regional area's. The odd time they have to spend a little longer in their cars, (like Aucklanders do every day) to drive to a more centralized hub for air services needs to be viewed in the context of their overall lifestyle and travel time advantages.

I agree 100% that Jones was well and truly out of line with his "bulldog" bully-boy threat.

[peat]

Its been widely reported Peat that Wanganui residents were driving the short distance to Palmerston North to pick up the dirt cheap fares offered by Jet Star. Its really not that far. There are considerable benefits in terms of driving and commute time to living and working in small regional area's.

Its an hours drive to Palmy , I've done it once since I moved here to the 'Nui this month. I'm not commuting but yeh getting around the place is amazingly easy here.

Air Chatham offer a pretty cheap service to Auckland so capitalism comes to the rescue - where there's a gap some entrepreneur will fill it.

I do believe though that National Flag Carrier bears some responsibilities to the nation.

[Beagle]

Most times of the day it would take me over an hour to get to Auckland airport Peat and then another 10-15 minutes trying to find a park at Auckland airports choc-a-block car park. Factor in a safety margin of another 15 minutes because of the possibility of extra congested traffic and I have to leave home nearly 2 hours before a morning flight so those expecting me to shed a tear for those in the regions who have to travel less time to get to a more centralised airport best not hold their breath. I don't believe the national carrier should have any overt or implied social cost impost placed upon it because as you suggest if the route is profitable with smaller aircraft someone will step into the breech.

AIR offered to supply all historical flight load data to any airline interested in taking over the Kapiti coast route, unreasonable to ask for more than that.
Air N.Z. is not a division of WINZ and is not there to be a convenience for people who simply can't be bothered driving an hour or a bit more. Regional people need to harden up a bit and realise that along with all the wonderful benefits of living in a regional area comes the occasional inconvenience for which it is morally wrong shareholders should pay for in any way shape or form.

https://www.moneyhub.co.nz/air-new-z...ps.html#before

[macduffy]

Shouldn't Shane Jones be first setting up an inquiry, or a working group, a royal commission or a parliamentary commission or something before criticising Air New Zealand?

[couta1]

Reeks of Deja Vu, remember before the last election Mr Jones strongly recommended publically that Contact Energy shareholders sell their shares, because when they got into Govt, they were going to buy the company back, yeah right.

[workingdad]

Airnz stopped flying Hamilton to Auckland last year and this was a frustration as Auckland is generally where I depart for international flights, starting in Hamilton going to Auckland and then onto where ever was real handy but alas I have to drive from the metropolis of Hamilton to Auckland about 125kms or go via Wellington which adds more travel time than the drive. So its not just the small regions having to suck it up. I understand commercial decisions are just that and accept it. Too many people have expectations of this and that but if it was their business what decisions would they make? Airnz is an airline and an iconic kiwi brand but it has to operate and compete in the same environment as the others.

[iceman]

Reeks of Deja Vu, remember before the last election Mr Jones strongly recommended publically that Contact Energy shareholders sell their shares, because when they got into Govt, they were going to buy the company back, yeah right.

That was Winnie himself wasnt it ??

[couta1]

That was Winnie himself wasnt it ??

Nah it was Jones, Winnie attended to damage control duties.