Fare cuts likely?

Press, 20 December 1978, Page 6

Fare cuts likely?

PA Wellington, Air New Zealand must re-1 duce fares to survive. That] was the message from the! Minister of Civil Aviation (Mr ii McLachlan) yesterday after! talking with his Australian' counterpart, Mr Peter Nixon.: He told a news conference,! after speaking to the Aus-] tralian Minister of Transport,p that he had not yet received!' an assurance from him that I: the new air fares agreement)' between Australia and the! United States would not have an adverse effect on New Zea-; land. Mr McLachlan said Mr Nixon could not give him the) assurance until they dis-

cussed the matter in Wellington next month. “He has given me an assurance that he is not out to harm New Zealand,” he said. Mr McLachlan said the agreement did not have adverse effects now, but it could later if it took passengers from Air New Zealand. “Air New Zealand has to compete to survive,” he said.

Mr McLachlan said two senior Australian Transport Ministry officials would come to Wellington for talks next month to pave the wav for a meeting between the two Ministers. This would take place before the new cheaper fares between Australia and the United States came into effect on February 1.

< “Further aviation talks I with the United States are | set down for March next | year and by that time, I hope, ■ the whole situation will be !clearer, and we will be able Ito discuss ways to improve 'tourist movement to and from I the United States,” Mr McI Lachlan said. | The Minister said he knew jof.no proposal before the (Government to reduce the ipresent $lOOO a month foreign (exchange allowance to stop 'efforts by New Zealanders to buy cheap air tickets in Sydney. “That is purely a taxation I (problem,” Mr McLachlan! I said.