Air New Zealand CEO Greg Foran says vaccination and testing will be part of any future travel, but the airline is yet to confirm any policy or restrictions for when borders reopen.
Speaking on The AM Show, Foran said Aotearoa's national carrier is currently in negotiations with staff about vaccinations as the global total of COVID-19 deaths surpasses 4.6 million.
"We are getting some good responses back and we will conclude consultation towards the middle of next week, and then we will have a look at what we have learned and make a decision from there," Foran said.
He said there is "overwhelming support" from staff to get the COVID-19 vaccine with around 85 percent of frontline workers already fully vaccinated, and just over 90 percent having had one dose so far.
Foran says the airline's first destinations are likely to be to places with high rates of vaccination, but travel won't be as simple as it was during the 2021 quarantine-free trans-Tasman bubble.
"It feels like the Tasman bubble as we knew it, where you know didn't require any pre-departure testing or vaccination, it's going to be very difficult to replicate and it's more likely that with most countries you're probably going to need some degree of vaccination and some degree of testing," he said.
Qantas CEO Alan Joyce said as early as November last year that COVID-19 vaccinations will be compulsory on Qantas flights when international travel takes off.
Last month, both Qantas and Virgin Australia confirmed it would be "necessary" for all employees to be vaccinated.
