Air New Zealand will add another jet and 5000 more annual flight seats between Dunedin and Wellington, the airline announced yesterday.
The news follows an announcement by the airline in April of an extra 30,000 airline seats between Dunedin and the capital.
From October 30 the airline will fly three direct Airbus A320 services between the destinations during the week.
Dunedin Airport chief executive Richard Roberts said the A320 jet was up to 30 minutes faster on the route.
"It now means that we are connecting our people to the rest of New Zealand and the world in a much faster way."
The announcement indicated the strong engagement Dunedin had with national business, Mr Roberts said.
"Dunedin has got a lot of potential. We have got to see this as a platform and use it to get more flights to and from here."
Air New Zealand chief sales and commercial officer Cam Wallace said the airline had worked with Dunedin stakeholders to ensure there was adequate demand for the additional flights.
"It’s great to see demand between Dunedin and Wellington growing at a level that is able to support an additional 12% capacity."
A Dunedin Airport spokeswoman said an ATR aircraft would be used for a weekend service between the cities.
The jet services could be booked now, she said.
