Air NZ-Air China sign code-share deal

Air New Zealand will run code-sharing flights with Air China from July 1 in an effort to tap the thriving Chinese market ahead of the 2008 Olympics, the Shanghai Business Journal reported. The Kiwi carrier said Air China will code-share on flights between Shanghai and New Zealand’s largest city Auckland, plus some flights connecting New Zealand and its neighbor Australia. The Kiwi carrier will code-share on Air China’s flights between Chinese and Australian cities. Shanghai is currently the only Chinese city connected directly to New Zealand. To keep up with surging demand, Air New Zealand will extend its air services to Shanghai from three to five flights per week starting in October.