Air New Zealand to introduce lie-flat business class seats on Auckland-Perth flights

Air New Zealand recently announced it will boost capacity on its flights between Auckland and Perth by 70 seats. The airline is taking this step to cope up with the increased demand on both sides of the Tasman.

The airline has decided to deploy a Boeing 777-200ER adding 20 percent more seats to each flight. The airline also disclosed that it will be introducing lie-flat business class seats (Business Premier beds) and Premium Economy to the Auckland-Perth route for the first time.

Bruce Parton, Air New Zealand Group General Manager Australasia, said that the demand for flights to and from Perth has grown significantly over the past 12 months. The airline has therefore been prompted to review its schedule and capacity to tackle the strong demand from travelers on both sides of the Tasman.

Air New Zealand in association with its alliance partner Virgin Australia jointly issued a statement saying that the 234-seat Boeing 767-300 will be replaced with a 304-seat Boeing 777-200ER from September 3 this year.