Need a little extra space for your legs? With Economy Stretch on some Air New Zealand routes, you can stretch out, relax and make your journey even more comfortable.

Economy Stretch is an Economy comfort option offered on flights operating between Auckland and Los Angeles, San Francisco, Taipei* and select services to Houston, Singapore, Tokyo and Vancouver*. You get up to 39% more legroom than our standard Economy seats, so you can stretch out in even more comfort. You’ll arrive more refreshed and ready to make the most of your time away.

Stretch out and relax to make your journey even more comfortable.

• More legroom means you have extra space to stretch your legs.
• The seats are in the first four rows of Economy, so you disembark sooner.
• The seats are further apart for you to enjoy a full recline during the flight.
• The extra space makes it easier for you to access the aisle from the window or middle seat.

Enjoy two more complimentary extras:

• Comfortable over-ear headphones, perfect for longer trips and for shutting out everything except your in-flight entertainment.
• A more generous plush pillow, so you can stretch out and relax in even more comfort.

The seat is the same as Economy and all other Economy services remain the same. You’ll still enjoy Air New Zealand’s world-class inflight dining, a great selection of entertainment and their award-winning service.

Raise your expectations when you step into First Class with Emirates – experience superior comfort.

The more you look around your Private Suite, the more little comforts you can find. Explore our comfort items, including luxury Bulgari fragrances and amenity kits, sleep sets of loungewear and slippers, and exclusive skincare and spa products, only in First Class.

The following features are available on selected routes depending on aircraft type, model and configuration.

Your hotel room in the sky: Close the floor to ceiling doors, set the mood with your personal lighting and temperature controller, and enjoy the freedom to dine, sleep and be entertained on your terms.

Experience a personal dining service: From sumptuous à la carte cuisine to a tasty midnight snack, our cabin crew will prepare your meals whenever the mood takes you.

Pamper yourself: Spritz on Bulgari’s floral woody fragrance – Eau Parfumée au Thé Blanc (white tea fragrance).

Your window into new worlds: Sit back to your personal widescreen and thousands of channels of entertainment in your private cinema.

Defy gravity: Recline your seat to the zero gravity setting and find your body’s natural resting position.

 

The Qantas Group’s next-generation Airbus A220 aircraft landed in Tasmania for the first time today, bringing a new level of passenger comfort and sustainability to the Apple Isle.

The inaugural A220-operated Melbourne to Hobart service landed at 11:20am with the Flying Kangaroo today also announcing plans for an all-new Qantas Club at Hobart Airport.

The flight was operated by the QantasLink A220 aircraft named Minyma Kutjara Tjukurpa that features the artwork of senior Pitjantjatjara artist Maringka Baker and depicts the Dreaming story of two sisters who traverse remote Australia together, covering vast distances to find their way home.

The Qantas Group’s A220s will steadily replace QantasLink’s long-serving fleet of Boeing 717s as part of the Qantas Group’s domestic fleet renewal program and will operate up to 26 flights per week between Melbourne and Hobart.

The A220 will also begin operating on the Melbourne-Launceston route from 12 November 2024.

The new aircraft is significantly more fuel efficient than previous generation aircraft, with ultra-modern light and bright cabin design with large windows and overhead lockers. With fast free Wi-Fi, specially designed seats and greater sense of space, the A220 offers customers a more comfortable travel experience.

Qantas and Jetstar have also reached a new long-term commercial agreement with Hobart Airport, which will see Qantas invest in a new lounge. Expected to open in 2027, the new Qantas Club will have almost double the current capacity and showcase Tasmanian produce.

Speaking from Hobart Airport, Qantas Group Executive Andrew Parker said the new aircraft and a new lounge would significantly improve the travel experience for tens-of-thousands of tourists and locals each year.

“Feedback from customers about the A220 has been fantastic and we’re really excited to be bringing it to Tasmania for the first time,” Mr Parker said.

“Tasmania is the home of eco-tourism and there’s no better place to operate our A220 aircraft which generate 25 per cent fewer emissions per seat and 50 per cent less noise than the aircraft that they replace.

“Their size and economics make them a great fit for many of our Tasmanian routes and this is just the start. We’ll continue to add A220 services as we receive additional new aircraft in the coming months and years.

“We’re also working closely with Hobart Airport on the plans for a new Qantas Club lounge to upgrade the pre-flight travel experience for customers. Once complete, our customers will be able to enjoy almost double the space and a wider range of local produce.”

Key features of the A220 experience include:

• Space for 137 passengers across two cabins, with 10 Business seats in a 2-2 configuration and 127 seats in Economy in a 2-3 configuration.
• The largest windows of any single aisle aircraft and a cabin with a greater sense of space.
• Fast, free Wi-Fi, allowing customers to stay connected, as well as the improved Qantas Entertainment App for streaming content to their own device.
• An integrated personal device holder and USB A and C charging in both Economy and Business; additional wireless charging pad in Business.
• More comfortable Economy seat with extra padding compared with the 717.
• Around 20 per cent more overhead locker space for all customers.
• Reduction in noise footprint of up to 50 per cent and reduction in carbon emissions of 25 per cent per seat compared with the aircraft its replacing.

Qantas introduces a new boarding experience

Qantas is introducing a new boarding process for domestic flights in four of the country’s biggest airports to reduce the time customers spend lining up at the gate and make it faster for them to be seated onboard.

The new approach, referred to as Group Boarding, is already used by airlines overseas but this is the first time it’s been adopted in Australia. It follows a series of successful trials in Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne and Perth which found the process helped contribute towards flights departing on time. 

Group Boarding allows customers to board within smaller groups, rather than queuing up with all passengers waiting to board at the same time.

Customers will be allocated to one of six boarding groups which will be displayed on their boarding pass. The groups are determined by cabin, Frequent Flyer status, and seat position in the aircraft.

Signage and announcements at the gate will let customers know when it is their group’s turn to board.

Group Boarding is being rolled out progressively at Brisbane, Perth, Melbourne and then Sydney Airport, for domestic flights operated by Qantas’ Boeing 737 and Airbus A330 aircraft Qantas Domestic CEO Markus Svensson said Group Boarding was the most significant change to the airline’s boarding processes in a decade.

“We’re continuing to look for ways to respond to pain points and improve the travel experience for our customers,” Mr Svensson said

“Group Boarding is designed to minimise the time our customers spend waiting to board and allows them to get settled more quickly.”

“We know how important on time departure is to our customers, so this process is also about doing everything possible to ensure we depart on time.”

Group Boarding will apply to all domestic flights operated by Boeing 737 and Airbus A330 aircraft departing from Brisbane (from June 3), Perth (from June 10), Melbourne (from June 17) and Sydney (from June 25).

A customer’s boarding group will be displayed on their boarding pass; Qantas App users and text/email subscribers will be notified if Group Boarding is in place for their flight; An announcement will be made at the gate when it is time for each group to board; The boarding pass scanner will only permit customers to board once their group has been invited to board.

This process focuses on the Qantas 737 and A330’s first. These fleets cover most of Qantas’ Domestic operations and are larger aircraft with most room for improvement of boarding times. Focusing on two specific aircraft types will enable Qantas to refine the group boarding process. Qantas said to give people time to become more familiar with Group Boarding before extending to other aircraft types or airports.