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Air New Zealand has announced a new non-stop seasonal service from Christchurch to Adelaide.
The flights, which will operate twice per week on A320/21neo aircraft, will run from 27 October 2025 to 27 March 2026, for a total of around 15,000 seats over the season. It will be the only non-stop connection between Adelaide and New Zealand’s South Island.
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“We know there’s strong demand for direct services between the South Island and Australia – not just for Kiwi travellers wanting to explore, but also to welcome more Australian tourists directly into the heart of the South Island,” Air New Zealand CEO Greg Foran said.
“This route gives South Islanders more choice and convenience when flying to Australia and it makes it even easier for Australians to access the incredible experiences New Zealand has to offer – from Queenstown and Fiordland to our world-class food and wine regions.
“Air New Zealand is entering an exciting new era. It’s exciting to see growth in our short-haul network, and customers can expect more good news on increased services in the near future. We’re looking forward to welcoming more travellers onboard this summer.”
Adelaide Airport managing director Brenton Cox said he has “no doubt a non-stop service to Christchurch will prove attractive to South Australians” and that there is “strong pent-up demand”, given New Zealand travel contributes around $82 million per year to the South Australian economy.
“Our data shows that close to 50,000 passengers are travelling indirectly between Adelaide and the South Island each year, with a relatively even split of inbound and outbound travel, so we’re confident that there will be significant interest in this new service,” he said.
“The majority of travellers between Adelaide and New Zealand are either on holiday or visiting family and relatives.
“We continue to grow our international aviation network with ambitious targets to reach 14 non-stop international destinations by 2030 and 39 international routes by 2050.”
The only non-stop connection from Adelaide to New Zealand is currently an Air New Zealand service to Auckland, which will increase to six flights per week in November.
It will be joined at the end of October by a seasonal Qantas service to Auckland, the first time Qantas has flown international “red-tail” services from Adelaide since 2013.
