Auckland International Airport CEO welcomes China Eastern Airlines route expansion to Buenos Aires
Auckland International Airport welcomed (18-Jun-2025) China Eastern Airlines' plans to launch twice weekly Shanghai Pudong-Auckland-Buenos Aires Ezeiza service from Dec-2025 - in addition to the carrier's existing Shanghai Pudong-Auckland service. Airport CEO Carrie Hurihanganui stated: "It's fantastic news for New Zealand's tourism and trade ambitions. While we have rebuilt our aviation connections with China, visitation is still recovering. Additional flights from Shanghai Pudong, a major globally connected hub, supports more travellers not just direct from China but also those connecting via Shanghai from across Asia and Europe into Auckland". Ms Hurihanganui added: "It also helps address a big gap in our direct capacity between New Zealand and South America, which is down 53% compared to the pre-pandemic period. That reduction in capacity has contributed to NZD76.7 million (USD46.2 million) less visitor spend, 32% fewer Kiwi businesses connecting face-to-face in South America and a 16% decline in cargo volumes". [more - original PR]
Background ✨
Seat capacity between Auckland and China had fully recovered to 115% of 2019 levels by Apr-2024, with seven Chinese destinations served at a frequency of 36 times weekly, reflecting strong confidence from Chinese carriers in the New Zealand market and a rising share of independent Chinese travellers arriving in Auckland1. China was New Zealand's second largest international visitor market prior to the pandemic2 3.