Air travel to and from Queenstown appears likely to be improved following an announcement by Air New Zealand that 13 of its Airbus A320s, which service transtasman flights, will be fitted out with Required Navigation Performance technology.
Last year, Air New Zealand introduced the technology to six of its Boeing 737 planes that fly into and out of Queenstown.
Air New Zealand airline operations general manager Captain David Morgan said more than 120 domestic services had been enabled by the new technology and this had encouraged Air New Zealand to install the technology on more planes.
RNP allows specially trained pilots to fly to lower altitudes with a more precise and efficient route into airports, also helped to reduce the effects bad weather had on services.
Capt Morgan said the airline was working closely with the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to gain regulatory approval, but expected the entire A320 fleet to be using RNP by the end of this year.
Required Navigation Performance (RNP) represented one of the latest developments in aircraft navigation, and Capt Morgan said its introduction on the A320s would provide more reliable services for flights from Australia in and out of Queenstown.
Air New Zealand Australia general manager John Harrison said having RNP fitted on to the A320s would provide further incentive for Australian customers to choose Air New Zealand for direct services into Queenstown.
