JAKARTA - Singapore Airlines and Air New Zealand said on May 28 that they plan to expand their joint network between Singapore and New Zealand for the Northern Winter 2026 season, adding 72,000 seats from late October.
The airlines said the increase would lift overall capacity by 17 percent to more than 490,000 seats between October 25, 2026 and March 27, 2027. Air New Zealand had previously announced new Christchurch services to Singapore, Tokyo Narita and Perth. The May 28 update adds Auckland to the story, with four more weekly Air New Zealand flights to Singapore and Singapore Airlines’ A380 deployment on one of its two daily Auckland services.
Under the plan, Air New Zealand will add four weekly Auckland-Singapore services with Boeing 787-9 aircraft, alongside its existing daily Auckland-Singapore service on the Boeing 777-300ER.
Singapore Airlines will adjust its Auckland schedule from three daily flights to two daily flights. One daily service, SQ285 and SQ286, will use the Airbus A380 instead of the Boeing 777-300ER. The other daily service, SQ281 and SQ282, will continue with the Boeing 777-300ER.
Singapore Airlines said its A380 on the Auckland route has 471 seats across four cabin classes. The aircraft includes six Suites seats, 78 Business Class seats, 44 Premium Economy Class seats and 343 Economy Class seats. The airline said the larger aircraft would support travel demand between New Zealand and Singapore and onward markets in its network.
“The deployment of the Airbus A380, with its greater seat capacity and enhanced travel experience, to Auckland, reflects our commitment to this important market,” Singapore Airlines Senior Vice President Marketing Planning Dai Haoyu said in the May 28 release.
Air New Zealand will operate three weekly Singapore-Christchurch services with Boeing 787-9 aircraft during Northern Winter 2026. Together with Singapore Airlines’ existing Christchurch operations of up to 12 weekly services, the two airlines will operate 15 weekly Christchurch services during peak months from November 2026 to February 2027.
New Zealand’s Ministry of Transport says the Air New Zealand-Singapore Airlines strategic alliance was first authorised in May 2014 and reauthorised in March 2018. On February 20, 2024, the government re-authorised the agreement for another five years until March 31, 2029.
The airlines said the expanded Northern Winter 2026 schedule is available for booking, subject to regulatory approval.
