No early hope of Japan-Chch flight

Press, 30 May 1981, Page 11

No early hope of Japan-Chch flight

Wellington reporter

Christchurch could hold out no hope of a direct flight from Japan for some time yet, the regional deputy manager of Japan Air Lines, Mr M. I. Johnson, has said in Wellington. This was in spite of figures showing that Japanese potential travellers to New Zealand showed increasing preferences for the South Island, and more chose the South Island as their destination than the North Island. Mr Johnson said he knew of no plans by Air New Zealand or Japan Air Lines to do any more than strengthen the existing Tokvo-Auckland air link.

Speaking after the opening session of a two-day tourism seminar in Wellington on Japanese tourism in New Zealand, Mr Johnson said a' Tokyo-Auckland-Christchurch schedule would almost certainly precede any direct’ flight arrangement between- Tokyo arid Christchurch. Any such schedule was also not imminent.

The manager of the Government Tourist office in Tokyo, Mr D. W. Lynch, said that the South Island was not deprived of the tourist dollar, however, because about 70 per cent of all tour packages

lor Japancese tourists covered the South Island. The Japanese were taking internal flights to the South Island. Mr Lynch said a direct flight ’from Tokyo to Christchurch “could *be ’ arranged’’ where there was a will. Japanese tourists traditionally took holiday's of about a week, and direct flights would cut down time wasted. He had tried to persuade both air lines of the sense of the a direct flight to the South Island, and at executive level there seemed to be general agreement, he said.

However, higher fares on a Christchurch flight would probably prompt cost-cons-cious Japanese to choose the Auckland route. Mr Johnson said that a first priority was to increase the capacity of jets on the Tokyo-Auckland service. These flights were running fullMr’ JohnsOh said'..4uckland was' . , to Christchurch’ >.bfccausey .the average' think. in of Auckland as<, hds .la’unchirig ' padl for overseas travel, Because New .Zealand . travel I to Japan, was = low, airlines ■needed to pick where there was mest's'eustom. ; c, : -

A Tokyo-Auckland-Christchurch link would also be difficult ' to develop without, a reciprocal two-stop arrangement in Japan. Air New Zealand, having just established direct links with Japan, was probably not thinking that far ahead, he said.

Mr Lynch said that the tourist industry in New Zealand did not always respond to promotional work on its behalf. Letters to every big hotel in New Zealand asking for colour slides of their premises for a Japanese tourism drive, elicited only three replies, he said.