Thinking of an American holiday? American Airlines' Los Angeles service is making a comeback to New Zealand, returning a direct flight from Auckland to LAX this summer.
The seasonal service launches on December 21 and operate daily until March 3. It complements daily services between Dallas/Fort Worth and Auckland.
The flight will be operated by a Boeing 787-9 and will depart Auckland at 3.50pm, arriving at LAX at 6.55am the same day, taking just over 12 hours.
The return flight will depart LAX at 11.50pm, arriving in Auckland at 10.25am, two days later, taking just over 13.5 hours.
According to the American Airlines' website, a roundtrip is as low as NZ$1890 or a one-way ticket from NZ$827, with more expensive flights departing on the weekend.
American Airlines first launched the Auckland to LAX direct flight in 2016, however, flights were halted in March 2020 due to the COVID pandemic.
Auckland Airport’s chief customer officer Scott Tasker told the NZ Herald they looked forward to seeing American Airlines aircraft return from LAX.
"The new flights are also projected to bring in $35 million of additional tourism spend into the New Zealand economy," Tasker said.
Meanwhile, Christchurch Airport chief executive Justin Watson told NZ Herald the new services will not only benefit New Zealand's tourism industry but also bring better value to New Zealanders by forcing down airfares to the US.
It comes as United Airlines announced last week a new service between Christchurch and San Francisco will be hitting the skies from December 1, 2023, allowing South Islanders to travel direct to the US for the first time. The service will run three times per week on United Airlines' Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner.
