Key Details
Date: 8th May 2023
Flight No: NZ5021
Route: Auckland to Dunedin
Aircraft: ATR 72-600
Registration: ZK-MVH
Cabin: Economy
AussieJetSetter 100 Point Rating
74/100
4/5 Check in
4/5 Boarding and Disembarkation
4/5 Baggage Handling
4/5 Booking Management
15/20 Crew & In-Flight Service
5/10 Entertainment
8/ 10 Value for Money/ Points
15/20 Seat and Cabin
15/20 Food and Beverage
The Route
The route between New Zealand’s largest city and the small city of Napier located in the Hawke’s Bay Region on the east coast of the North Island sees upwards of around 10 daily return services which are all operated by the Kiwi Flag carrier with there smaller ATR-72 regional turbo-prop aircraft. With a scheduled flight time of just 1 hour and 5 minutes and covering a distance of around 350km this flight provides for scenic views over the interior of the North Island and out over to New Zealand’s stunning Haweke’s Bay Region. Today’s flight had a scheduleed departure time of 1.45pm for a 2.50pm arrival into the Hawke’s Bay Airport
Pricing on the route seems competitive despite the lack of competition with today’s airfare inclusive of luggage costing only around $100NZD.
Checking in at Auckland Airport
Check in today’s Air New Zealand regional flight was super easy having completed the night before on the Air New Zealand website so I proceeded straight to the kiosks to print off a bag tag and also a paper copy of my boarding pass. Air NZ have the latest in check in and bag drop kiosks at Auckland Airport meaning my bags were tagged and off to Napier in only moments. Plenty of staff were on hand though just in case you have any issues which is great.
Do keep in mind that for better or worse there is no security screening to go through for domnestic flights with a cpacity of under 90 seats within New Zealand meaning Air New Zealand’s ATR and Dash 8 flights departure from regional gates which are seperate to the jet gates. This means at Auckland there is a second baggage drop for regional flights to the left hand side of the terminal and there is also a second Air New Zealand regional lounge that caters for these flights which don’t requite going through security.
Seating in Economy Class
With a fleet of 29 ATR 72 aircraft you’ll very much find the turboprop aircraft to be a staple fixture of the Air New Zealand regional flight network. Seating comes in an all economy class layout on the ATR which is spread out acxross 17 rows in a 2-2 configuration with a total of 68 seats. Seat pitch comes in at a fairly respectable 30in (78cm) which is surprisingly spacious for turboprop aircraft standards.
The first row is arguably the place to be in terms of passenger comfort as it is the only extra row seats on this aircraft. Once at your seat you’ll find fairly comfortable black leather seting along with a fairly standard fold back tray table and also a built in hard shell cubby in the seat behind for in-flight lierature. There is also a fairly standard seat-back pocket as-well.
Entertainment
Unlike Air New Zealand’s international flights there no IFE screens built into nor any wifi or steam to you own device options (wifi is however are being rolled out across certain other Air New Zealand aircraft) on the carrier’s ATR-72 aircraft. To be honest unlike domestic flights in Australia which can reach up to 5.5 hours in length with the longest flights in NZ not even reaching 2 hours it’s not really essential. Each seat however does a complimentary copy of the in flight magazine which you are free to take home after the flight.
Inflight Service and Food and Beverage
Shortly after takeoff the friendly Air New Zealand crew spring into action offering their fairly standardised tea and coffee service which comes with a Cookie Time chocolate chip cookie. This service is complimentary on Air New Zealand Domestic flights although they do have Koru Hour flights that depart between 4.35pm and 7.05pm Monday to Fridays which are jet operated services on the main trunk routes between Wellington, Christchurch, Dunedin and Queenstown where you do get a complimentary soft drink, beer or wine along with cheese and crackers or a savoury snack.
There is no buy on-board menu so if you were hoping for something fancier or more substantial that what is complementarily offered than you are out of luck flying domestically with Air New Zealand.
Arriving into Napier
Despite the aircraft leaving Auckland around 15 minutes late we made up all the time in the air arriving into a lovely mild sunny winter afternoon into Napier a couple inutes ahead of the scheduled 2.50pm arrival time. The descent into Napier Hawke’s Bay Airport on a sunny day is very much a picturesque one with stunning views of the Hawke’s Bay Wine region on the approach.
Hawke’s Bay Airport itself is a compact, modern terminal which is located just 6km from the centre of the city or around 20km from Hastings. Baggage came out promptly and i was out of the terminal in no time whereby you find a good range of taxi and uber options and at a pinch if travelling lightly walking into town is also a possiblity.
Summing Up:
Overall this morning’s flight with Air New Zealand was a pleasant and otherwise uneventful flight. For the price I paid I was very satisfied with today’s journey, the crew were really friendly and professional, the seating on the aircraft whilst not not the most spacious was adequate and the complimentary coffee and snack although basic was adequate for such a short flight.
In summing up today’s flight got me between Auckland and Napier in comfort and with a minimum of fuss at a really competitive fare so really hard to find to many criticisms of it!
