On 8 December, United Airlines launched the only flight to North America from Christchurch Airport from San Francisco. The service will be the US carrier’s second New Zealand destination and will complement services from Auckland to San Francisco and Los Angeles. The inaugural flight was operated on a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner.
«United is delighted to strengthen our presence in New Zealand with inaugural flight UA730, the first non-stop service from San Francisco to Christchurch. New Zealand will always be a bucket list destination for our American travellers, and this flight offers direct access to the natural wonders of the South Island, while making it easier for the people of southern New Zealand to head north to America and beyond,» said Tim Walls, United Airlines Regional Sales Director for Australia, New Zealand and Tahiti.
Flight UA730 will depart San Francisco on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday at 23:10 and land in Christchurch at 10:35+2. The return flight UA731 will depart Christchurch on Tuesday, Friday and Sunday 14:15 and arrive in San Francisco at 06:20. All local times, the scheduled service will be operated on 243-seat Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft (28 Business Class/21 Premium Economy/194 Economy).
This new service in partnership with Air New Zealand will provide the only non-stop connection between New Zealand’s South Island and North America. The United flight will provide South Island exporters with additional air cargo and benefit the U.S. Antarctic Programme.
See also: United Airlines began nonstop flights between San Francisco and Manila
