American Adds Dallas To Auckland Flight, Axes Other New Zealand Routes

American Adds Dallas To Auckland Flight, Axes Other New Zealand Routes

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With New Zealand’s borders having reopened, American plans to launch a flight between Dallas and Auckland. However, the carrier’s overall network to New Zealand will look different than before. I first wrote about this a couple of days ago, but wanted to note that this flight is now on sale, so we have a sense of the schedule.

American plans seasonal Dallas to Auckland route

American Airlines plans to operate a daily nonstop flight between Dallas (DFW) and Auckland (AKL) as of late 2022. The flight will operate seasonally, initially between October 29, 2022, and March 25, 2023. At 7,440 miles, this will be American’s second longest route, after Los Angeles to Sydney (Dallas to Hong Kong used to be the longest route, but there’s no sign of that returning).

The schedule for this flight will be as follows, with the flight being blocked at 15hr15min westbound and 13hr50min eastbound.

AA35 Dallas to Auckland departing 10:30PM arriving 8:45AM (+2 days)
AA34 Auckland to Dallas departing 1:40PM arriving 8:30AM

American will use a Boeing 787-9 for Auckland flights, featuring a total of 285 seats, including 30 business class seats, 21 premium economy seats, and 234 economy seats.

American’s Boeing 787-9 business class

American cuts other New Zealand routes

Pre-pandemic, American Airlines operated a seasonal flight between Los Angeles and Auckland. This was operated as part of the carrier’s transpacific joint venture with Qantas, though it was suspended in early 2020.

In October 2019, American announced plans to launch two new routes to New Zealand:

  • American was going to launch a seasonal Dallas to Auckland route as of October 2020
  • American was going to launch a seasonal Los Angeles to Christchurch route as of October 2020

As you’d expect, these routes were postponed. With this latest update:

  • American’s Dallas to Auckland flight replaces the carrier’s Los Angeles to Auckland flight, so that route is being axed
  • There are no signs of the Los Angeles to Christchurch route launching; so while it’s not officially canceled, it’s also not bookable for any point in the future

It’s pretty incredible to see how American has scaled back its network in Los Angeles. Years ago LAX was supposed to become a huge transpacific hub for American, while at this point the carrier only has long haul flights to London and Sydney scheduled. We’ve seen American cut routes to Beijing, Buenos Aires, Hong Kong, Sao Paulo, Shanghai, Tokyo, etc.

Admittedly Dallas has a lot more connecting traffic for American than Los Angeles does, but in some way it’s surprising that American couldn’t make a Los Angeles to Auckland flight work in conjunction with Qantas, to give Air New Zealand some competition. That’s not to say that American or Qantas much transpacific market share in New Zealand, but still, you’d hope there would be room for a competitor.

American is giving up on LAX

Bottom line

American Airlines is launching a seasonal Dallas to Auckland route as of October 2022, which is exciting. Unfortunately this is coming at the expense of American’s Los Angeles to Auckland route, and there’s also no sign of a Los Angeles to Christchurch route launching.

We’re continuing to see American totally give up on long haul service out of Los Angeles, which shouldn’t come as much of a surprise.

What do you make of American’s Dallas to Auckland route, plus the carrier retreating at LAX?

Conversations (54)
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  1. Randy Diamond

    Qantas is starting JFK-AKL which continues to SYD. So maybe best to move AA flight to DFW with more connections.

    1. Randy Diamond

      Plus the field is to big LAX-AKL with NZ, UA, and DL.

  2. Nick Guest

    I Think American should eye service from Dallas or Los Angeles to Melbourne, Australia to complement their Joint Venture and fellow Oneworld partner Qantas' service from each city to Melbourne! American would do well giving United Airlines a run for their money on this key route.
    I think as well that the seasonal service to Auckland should after proved successful could be made year-round. It would give Americans & Kiwi's alike another choice to...

    I Think American should eye service from Dallas or Los Angeles to Melbourne, Australia to complement their Joint Venture and fellow Oneworld partner Qantas' service from each city to Melbourne! American would do well giving United Airlines a run for their money on this key route.
    I think as well that the seasonal service to Auckland should after proved successful could be made year-round. It would give Americans & Kiwi's alike another choice to get between the US and New Zealand.

  3. LONDON GOONER Guest

    Maybe you should try Air Tahiti nuI. We flew them last week AKL/PPT/LAX.
    Dreamliner , not bad f and b and IFE was also ok , touch screen etc. Half the price of AirNZ and no going via SYD on Qantas

  4. LaLaLand Paddy Guest

    Living here in LaLa Land I'm not happy about American pulling the plug on LAX-AKL. Now I have to go Qantas - not a hardship but I don't get the same Avios, do I? And I have to go to SYD and then fly back to AKL 3 hours. That evens up the Avios disparity, if at the expense of 6 extra hours in business. Yes, a true First World hardship.

    1. Mike C Diamond

      If you're on an AA flight number on QF metal you should get the same FF points (BA I assume, or Aer Lingus?) as you would on AA metal. With the extra Avios for the trans-Tasman flight. You could always back-track to DFW but I'd take the QF option every time, fares being comparable.

  5. DesertGhost Guest

    Two quick points: First, American is missing 13 aircraft it thought it would have at the time it retired its A330s and 767s. And second, when did it become a crime to deploy aircraft where an airline thinks they'll make more money? Another point presents itself. These aren't normal times. And no one knows what the new normal will look like.

  6. Robert Milton Guest

    I would never fly an American-based carrier ANYWHERE internationally. They just don't have the chops to do those kinds of flights. I miss Pan Am.

  7. Razzak Memon Guest

    Auckland is similar to my hometown or Abottabad, Pakistan. Quiet fun loving peaceful people who enjoy life.
    I look forward to taking this flight. I am a CK and my wife is also a CK so we are AA royalty.

  8. jane blogs Guest

    Flying from Australia or NZ to DFW is a much smoother, efficient and pleasant experience than flying via LAX so I imagine that AA actually has the consumer in mind with making this change. Unless one is flying specifically to West Coast only, then it makes much more sense to enter/exit the US via DFW. Firstly it means that one stays on a larger plane with significantly better inflight service rather than arriving in LAX,...

    Flying from Australia or NZ to DFW is a much smoother, efficient and pleasant experience than flying via LAX so I imagine that AA actually has the consumer in mind with making this change. Unless one is flying specifically to West Coast only, then it makes much more sense to enter/exit the US via DFW. Firstly it means that one stays on a larger plane with significantly better inflight service rather than arriving in LAX, finding your bag, waiting at immigration, picking up your bag, dropping it off, changing terminals, cramming onto a smaller domestic flight to wherever (- the experience is slightly better in reverse but not much). And all this just as you have completed a 14 hour flight when you feel like death! The LAX experience is not good.

    INMHO Much preferable to have the longer international flight with better chance of sleep followed by a better DFW experience & a shorter domestic flight onto the mid west or east coast all increasing markets for Australia & NZ which is why QF is working on their Project Sunrise which will eventually see non stop flights to both NYC and Chicago bypassing even DFW. And for those flying from the West Coast, AA still offers AKL via Syd with QF which is a pretty decent option.

    There are no "killed economies" on this end of the globe in either Australia or NZ. As @Platy @RichM said, the Australian economy continues to grow, if not boom, domestic & international travel has surpassed pre pandemic levels to all open destinations so why wouldn't AA be looking to implement AKL/DFW flights on a route that has been very successful for QF.

  9. David Guest

    When AA changed our scheduled flight from DCA to AKL via LAX to go through DFW instead, they put us on a 7 pm flight to Dallas which would have gotten us there only 45 minutes before our flight from DFW to AKL. We switched that to a 5 pm flight, which now gives us several hours between flights. Considering that we are flying in January when weather could be an issue, we feel we...

    When AA changed our scheduled flight from DCA to AKL via LAX to go through DFW instead, they put us on a 7 pm flight to Dallas which would have gotten us there only 45 minutes before our flight from DFW to AKL. We switched that to a 5 pm flight, which now gives us several hours between flights. Considering that we are flying in January when weather could be an issue, we feel we can breathe a bit easier not having to worry about making that very quick connection in Dallas.

  10. Brianair Guest

    AA should rename themselves Dallas Airlines at this point. Not trying to offend those living in the DFW area, but I wonder how many people living in Asia or Oceania know about it (compared to, say, NY, LA, or SF). It’s kind of sad how AA doesn’t want to do transpacific from anywhere besides DFW. But again, maybe that’s a good thing because few would want to fly AA overseas at their service level, unless...

    AA should rename themselves Dallas Airlines at this point. Not trying to offend those living in the DFW area, but I wonder how many people living in Asia or Oceania know about it (compared to, say, NY, LA, or SF). It’s kind of sad how AA doesn’t want to do transpacific from anywhere besides DFW. But again, maybe that’s a good thing because few would want to fly AA overseas at their service level, unless of course they were the only option. Which is precisely why DFW works so well, because people there are probably so hub captive.

    Also, I’m surprised Christchurch is being cut, as I thought the South Island of NZ is a popular tourist destination. And LAX-CHC is a great niche route that I wouldn’t have expected from a US3 airline that’s not UA. Hasn’t leisure travel been rebounding quickly and isn’t it making up the majority of traffic right now?

    1. Andrew Diamond

      Agreed. I feel like International service is a checkbox AAA needs to complete rather than a competitive offering.

      There’s no way I’m flying from California to Texas in order to get to Asia or Oceana. Nothing against Texas, but it’s three hours in the wrong direction.

  11. Mike C Diamond

    Can't say this is irrational, AA still offers AKL services on its own metal from one US city arguably with better access to its network. If you're in LA or SF they offer one stop to AKL via SYD with some TPAC and all trans-Tasman flights on QF as well as the backtrack to DFW. Anywhere else in the US you already had a lay-over.

    Christchurch, for all its charm is a small city so...

    Can't say this is irrational, AA still offers AKL services on its own metal from one US city arguably with better access to its network. If you're in LA or SF they offer one stop to AKL via SYD with some TPAC and all trans-Tasman flights on QF as well as the backtrack to DFW. Anywhere else in the US you already had a lay-over.

    Christchurch, for all its charm is a small city so the economics of a non-stop from the US would be questionable. As already noted, Air NZ offers perfectly a perfectly good services from AKL (better than AA domestic Y from my experience) and AA can sell one-stop flights there from DFW, LAX and SFO on QF.

    As for the comments above about Aussies being willing prisoners or either AU or NZ having tanked their economies. Nah, not true, didn't happen.

    1. Tyc Guest

      Christchurch is undoubtedly a small city with a population of only 540,000 within its greater limits. However it is the only airport in the South Island that can accommodate long haul jets and the South Island is where most tourists want to visit. Additionally I understand Christchurch is the hub for all cargo airfreight out of the South Island including lucrative fresh produce. Singapore airlines has flown direct services in to Christchurch for decades and...

      Christchurch is undoubtedly a small city with a population of only 540,000 within its greater limits. However it is the only airport in the South Island that can accommodate long haul jets and the South Island is where most tourists want to visit. Additionally I understand Christchurch is the hub for all cargo airfreight out of the South Island including lucrative fresh produce. Singapore airlines has flown direct services in to Christchurch for decades and does very well out of pax and freight.

      I’ve flown in to New Zealand via Auckland dozens of times including just recently and I’m surprised how disconnected the international and domestic terminals are. The Christchurch airport experience is much more integrated and pleasurable.

      I believe it’s only a matter of time that direct long haul services from North America to NZs South Island will commence especially in the post COVID era where direct point to point flying is more desirable compared to going through multiple hubs.

  12. Jerry Guest

    Australians are descendants of prisoners. Prison isn’t a big deal to them. Why wouldn’t they imprison themselves for 2 years when they get scared of something? Cuba and North Korea also imprison their citizens, and had very low covid cases (although NK now has a problem).

    1. platy Guest

      @ Jerry

      A proportion of Australians are indeed descended from British convicts. But then so too are a proportion of Americans - the USA was ALSO a British penal colony, an inconvenient fact that some Americans choose to ignore.

      Some American can also trace their ancestry to the separate attempts of the French government to populate Louisiana with the dross of their society at the time.

      Better go check your US history, buddy, before...

      @ Jerry

      A proportion of Australians are indeed descended from British convicts. But then so too are a proportion of Americans - the USA was ALSO a British penal colony, an inconvenient fact that some Americans choose to ignore.

      Some American can also trace their ancestry to the separate attempts of the French government to populate Louisiana with the dross of their society at the time.

      Better go check your US history, buddy, before making dumb comments.

      Now the difference between the USA and Australia is that Australia successfully managed COVID without over one million dead compatriots. Australia achieved this without "killing" its economy (and has an economy growing at over 4% whilst that of the USA is contracting). Australia has enjoyed very high vaccination rates enabling opening up the country where its rule are have been LESS restrictive than those of the USA (i.e. no pre-departure test for international arrivals) for some months.

      Australia is also a civilised society whereas certain elements of the USA are utterly barbaric. Does this reflects convict ancestry? You decide.

      Quote from Washington Post article 26 May 2022:

      "...Gunmaker Daniel Defense posted online an advertising photo of a toddler holding one of its AR-15-style rifles just days before one of its firearms was used in the elementary school shooting in Uvalde, Tex.

      The photo shows a young boy holding the rifle on his lap, along with the caption: “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”
      That is a reference to a Bible proverb.
      The caption ends with an emoji of two hands held together in prayer.
      In the photo, the boy is sitting cross-legged and looking down at the firearm on his lap. The ammunition clip is lying separately on the ground. He is wearing a T-shirt that reads, “#Rascal.” An adult’s arm is seen pointing at him.
      Daniel Defense posted the image to Twitter on May 16.
      The next week, a gunman used a Daniel Defense DDM4 Rifle to kill 19 children and two adults at a school in Texas, authorities said...".

      That quote summarises one part of modern day USA. In Australia, the vast majority are civilised people. We don't put our love of guns ahead of our love of our children and fellow citizens (we have effective gun control measures and virtually no mass shootingd) , just as we didn't put our selfish self interest ahead of others in our community during COVID and make pathetic post hoc justifications for the shameful death toll.

      To be clear, I'm not judging a whole people, just exposing your stupidity in making such as dumb comment.

  13. PB Guest

    I’m booked Dallas - LAX - AKL in November, does anyone know if they will just rebook me from Dallas to AKL automatically in this situation? Cheers

    1. Michael Guest

      I'm on same route in Nov too. I fully expect AA to rebook me on the non-stop DFW-AKL as soon as they cancel the LAX leg and update their schedule. As of right now, the LAX-AKL flt is still available for sale, so I'm not sure when they will update their system. If they don't do it automatically, a call to AA rez will do the trick.

    2. David Guest

      They have probably already done that. Our flight from DCA to AKL via LAX was changed automatically this morning to go through DFW instead.

    3. PB Guest

      David - you were right changed, they changed it automatically, just never got an email on it. Thanks

    4. Andrew Diamond

      At least they took care of it, crappy as the change is. ANA and VA just cancel your FC award tickets and don't even bother to tell you about it. "Surprise! LAX and SFO are on 787s now. Good luck finding a new award!"

  14. Tyc Guest

    Most American tourists flying to NZ want to visit the stunning South Island. It’s a shame there are no direct services to Christchurch given its a much easier airport for domestic connections to the likes of Queenstown as well as the ability to rent a car and drive through to Queenstown via spectacular scenery. The first airline to start a LAX - CHC direct service will be on the money. It’s a lucrative route that American should reconsider.

    1. Cranky flyer Guest

      Air NZ has hourly flights under $75US from Auckland to Christchurch.

      It's not like the world stops with US carriers

    2. NZ Pom Guest

      AKL-CHC will cost you a lot more than NZD 75 if you have any luggage (as international tourists would) and if you book less than 6 months ahead!

    3. Mike C Diamond

      @cranky flyer said $US75 not NZD. Even so, adding the AKL-CHC sector to an international ticket shouldn't cost much, if anything more, and would include luggage.

  15. Lucas Guest

    Lucky, currently booked on an AA flight AKL to LAX on 1 Jan 2023. Will AA just auto rebook me thru Dallas?

    1. Don Guest

      Hi Lucas. And you’re not asking AA why?

  16. derek Guest

    New Zealand's now not that new tax results in me not planning to go to NZ. I have limited time and the tax kills a desire to go there.

  17. Icarus Guest

    Travel to Asia is still restricted, so AA can’t operate flights to China and Japan as it did before.

    Look at how many Chinese carriers and routes operated at LAX pre pandemic. I think it was upwards of 12-14 a day. Now it’s around 1-2 a day.

    LA is still an important hub for AA as they are spending a fortune on rebuilding terminal 4. The elderly concourse is going to get...

    Travel to Asia is still restricted, so AA can’t operate flights to China and Japan as it did before.

    Look at how many Chinese carriers and routes operated at LAX pre pandemic. I think it was upwards of 12-14 a day. Now it’s around 1-2 a day.

    LA is still an important hub for AA as they are spending a fortune on rebuilding terminal 4. The elderly concourse is going to get demolished. Most AA New Zealand traffic will be transit too via DFW and they possibly can’t compete with air New Zealand

    1. Leigh Guest

      LAX T4 is not being demolished, AA is just building a new structure in between T4 and T5 for a new combined check-in and airside connecting walkway (like what DL has built between T2 and T3), though there is already an underground airside connecting walkway between T4 and T5. The construction has blocked gate access at T4 (not sure about T5), so that is an operational challenge for AA. Once the connecting construction is done,...

      LAX T4 is not being demolished, AA is just building a new structure in between T4 and T5 for a new combined check-in and airside connecting walkway (like what DL has built between T2 and T3), though there is already an underground airside connecting walkway between T4 and T5. The construction has blocked gate access at T4 (not sure about T5), so that is an operational challenge for AA. Once the connecting construction is done, then LAX/LAWA can work on the eventual new T9, which will result in the demolition of AA's satellite "Eagle's Nest" terminal, so the AA Eagle operation will eventually have to relocate to T5.

      And, by the way, AA can compete with Air NZ from LAX given the QF/AA JV. Something like 60% of the AKL leisure traffic from the US goes onward to Australia as a potion of their vacation, which can connect via QF's large NZ-AU route structure...it will be in mutual interest of QF/AA to eventually see at least the AKL service return, even if only x 3 or x4 few times a week...."west of Rockies" represents approx 1/3 of US pax to AU/NZ, which must be factored.

  18. Randy Diamond

    Only makes sense. Flights to AKL, SYD, MEL out of DFW usually need only one connection for most people, where as LAX, with less AA flights, requires 2 stops for some.

  19. Sharon Guest

    The big 3 have all basically given up on long haul from LA except for Sydney and London service. Very interesting.

    1. shoeguy Guest

      LA long haul, notably to Asia, was, pre-pandemic, and to some extent remains, saturated. They yields aren't there. The business traffic certainly hasn't picked up this far into the pandemic. LA long haul means different things to each of the US3.

      For UA, they have SFO and so LAX will always be a secondary and cater to local originating traffic.

      For AA, pre-pandemic, they needed a TPAC gateway other than DFW and on the...

      LA long haul, notably to Asia, was, pre-pandemic, and to some extent remains, saturated. They yields aren't there. The business traffic certainly hasn't picked up this far into the pandemic. LA long haul means different things to each of the US3.

      For UA, they have SFO and so LAX will always be a secondary and cater to local originating traffic.

      For AA, pre-pandemic, they needed a TPAC gateway other than DFW and on the West Coast. LAX was the only option despite the challenges. TPAC as it was pre-pandemic is not coming back any time soon and the rest AA flew out of LAX (GRU, EZE) was ridiculous.

      DL too finds it easier to hand traffic to its partners for the most part, except for SYD which it needs to keep to stay relevant in the US-Australia market. I don't see DL going much further than HND and PVG when it can restart the latter.

    2. Tim Dunn Diamond

      Most of Asia remains restricted for travel which explains why no US airline is flying LAX to Asia.
      Unlike American, Delta and United still have LAX to Asia flights in their timetables - jsut further out.

      And I believe AA has ditched SYD right now while DL and UA are both still flying it. DL is increasing the number of flights on LAX-SYD in December even though it lost Virgin Australia as a partner...

      Most of Asia remains restricted for travel which explains why no US airline is flying LAX to Asia.
      Unlike American, Delta and United still have LAX to Asia flights in their timetables - jsut further out.

      And I believe AA has ditched SYD right now while DL and UA are both still flying it. DL is increasing the number of flights on LAX-SYD in December even though it lost Virgin Australia as a partner - which many were quick to say would doom DL's Australia flight. Looks like that didn't happen.

    3. kimshep Guest

      Of course, the reason that AA has 'ditched' SYD - note: only until end Oct - is that AA doesn't have the frames to support the service. They have clearly and publicly stated that SYD service resumption is dependent on the receipt of additional overdue B787-9 frames (3) from Boeing. So, clearly not a lack of pax demand.

  20. Mak Guest

    Some destinations have effectively killed their economies to "control" Covid (i.e., New Zealand, Australia, Hong Kong) and travel to and from these destinations are never coming back to what they were. There are still people who can afford foreign travel for leisure, but business travel will be extremely limited for an extended and indeterminate period of time - maybe forever.

    1. tipsyinmadras Diamond

      Way to over-dramatize countries protecting themselves against a global pandemic. Hong Kong has been a massive global business hub for decades and its economy has been linked to and extremely dependent on the international sphere. Its decline has far more to do with the Mainland intentionally strangling it to death. Australia and New Zealand are isolated due to geography and have always had to, and will continue to be, self-sufficient without a massive dependency on...

      Way to over-dramatize countries protecting themselves against a global pandemic. Hong Kong has been a massive global business hub for decades and its economy has been linked to and extremely dependent on the international sphere. Its decline has far more to do with the Mainland intentionally strangling it to death. Australia and New Zealand are isolated due to geography and have always had to, and will continue to be, self-sufficient without a massive dependency on global links. Business travel everywhere is down as companies have realized how much they can accomplish/save through remote work. Australia and New Zealand will be fine.

    2. stogieguy7 Diamond

      The zero COVID strategy has always been foolish, in that the Wuhan is so contagious that there's no way to prevent it. All it ultimately does is to damage your economy and thus the lot of your people.

    3. platy Guest

      @ stogieguy7

      But the Alpha and Delta strains of COVID WERE successfully contained in certain countries / states. You are the foolish one for attaching to a mistruth. You are also apparently confused between the potential infection rates between various strains of COVID.

      COVID was successfully controlled in Australia until such time that the vaccination rates could do the heavy lifting. The main purposes of those vaccinations is to control mortality and hospitalisation rates. Try...

      @ stogieguy7

      But the Alpha and Delta strains of COVID WERE successfully contained in certain countries / states. You are the foolish one for attaching to a mistruth. You are also apparently confused between the potential infection rates between various strains of COVID.

      COVID was successfully controlled in Australia until such time that the vaccination rates could do the heavy lifting. The main purposes of those vaccinations is to control mortality and hospitalisation rates. Try not to confuse prevention with control - many people stupidly do just that.

      The economic data for Australia (when compared the data from countries like the USA which sat by whilst 1,000,000 plus died from COVID) quite simply refute your claim that the economy has been damaged (see my data in separate post herein).

      Australians fully supported various state governments in putting people's health first and have continued to show that support in subsequent elections.

      Australians have also lined up for their vaccinations enabling very high relative rates of vaccination.

      You are attaching to dumb statements that have been repeatedly disproved by the factual evidence. That makes more than just the statement dumb.

      Meanwhile, the USA still has pre-departure COVID testing for international arrivals. The irony is exquisite.

    4. Dave Guest

      That used to be the case, but Australia has globalized now. Case in point, Australia has become very dependent on foreign petrol as refineries continue to close. Victoria has no capacity since Altona has shuttered. The automotive manufacturing industry is completely gone. The only thing Australia had going for it during covid was relatively low national debt that allowed it to fund jobseeker etc without printing as much money as the US had to.

      That...

      That used to be the case, but Australia has globalized now. Case in point, Australia has become very dependent on foreign petrol as refineries continue to close. Victoria has no capacity since Altona has shuttered. The automotive manufacturing industry is completely gone. The only thing Australia had going for it during covid was relatively low national debt that allowed it to fund jobseeker etc without printing as much money as the US had to.

      That all said I'm glad I wasn't locked down in Melbourne for 262 days like my friends and family were. That was a completely absurd and hysterical response in retrospect.

    5. RichM Diamond

      "Killed their economies" - what are you smoking?

      Here in Western Australia, we shut our border for two years to not only the world, but also the rest of Australia. This allowed us to live COVID-free for two years with almost no lockdowns. We have since reopened and allowed COVID in (after our adult population was >98% vaccinated).

      The economy here is absolutely booming. The main constraint is that there is a shortage of labour to meet all the demand.

    6. John Guest

      @RichM

      Settle down, mate. You make WA sound like it's Shenzen or Dubai or London, or somewhere more advanced like that. Everyone knows WA is a one horse show. Take the iron ore exports to China away, and it's nothing. Literally nothing. WA is a prime example of an unbalanced economy. God help you when Brazil's operation comes online and China gives it's last Aussie outpost the flick!!

    7. platy Guest

      @ John

      But none of your statements (whether true or not) negate @ RichM's position. Are you able to follow a logical line of reasoning or not?!

      The argument was whether or not COVID measures "killed" the economy or not.

      The answer is an emphatic NO! in the case of West Australia.

      (FWIW Shenzhen's local economy will be tied into any geopolitical shift in relationship between mainland China and various other countries, the Emirate...

      @ John

      But none of your statements (whether true or not) negate @ RichM's position. Are you able to follow a logical line of reasoning or not?!

      The argument was whether or not COVID measures "killed" the economy or not.

      The answer is an emphatic NO! in the case of West Australia.

      (FWIW Shenzhen's local economy will be tied into any geopolitical shift in relationship between mainland China and various other countries, the Emirate of Dubai is (amongst other factors) dependent on a very high proportion of expat labor (cheap labor from India, Pakistan, Philippines, etc) and London still struggling from the fall out of the insanity of Brexit).

    8. platy Guest

      @ Mak

      The facts discredit your claims about "killed" economies.

      Expected change in real GDP in percent from 2019 to 2022: Australia 6.6% and USA 6.1%.

      Unemployment rate (seasonally adjusted): Australia 4.0% and USA 3.6%.

      Federal government debt as percent of GDP: Australia 45.1% and USA 128.9%.

      Australian economy growth rate is 4.2% whereas US economy contracted in the Jan-March 2022 quarter (annualised) at -1.4%.

      Clue - making grandiose statements bereft of evidential backing...

      @ Mak

      The facts discredit your claims about "killed" economies.

      Expected change in real GDP in percent from 2019 to 2022: Australia 6.6% and USA 6.1%.

      Unemployment rate (seasonally adjusted): Australia 4.0% and USA 3.6%.

      Federal government debt as percent of GDP: Australia 45.1% and USA 128.9%.

      Australian economy growth rate is 4.2% whereas US economy contracted in the Jan-March 2022 quarter (annualised) at -1.4%.

      Clue - making grandiose statements bereft of evidential backing just makes you look dumb.

    9. Nathan Guest

      @platy

      Australia is at the end of the world and is subsequently one of the most reactive economies. Any recession happening in the US and Europe will happen there as your PM has seemingly severed functional economic relationships with China. Not a bad thing, just saying.

    10. platy Guest

      @ Nathan

      Which PM are you talking about? There was a federal election just a week ago. There is a new PM. Did you even know that (such an expert you apparently think that you are!)?

      Try tipping your schoolchild globe upside down - you'll see that geography is just a matter of personal perspective and in your case, prejudice.

      Of course there are economic challenges (ironically including a labor supply issue), just like...

      @ Nathan

      Which PM are you talking about? There was a federal election just a week ago. There is a new PM. Did you even know that (such an expert you apparently think that you are!)?

      Try tipping your schoolchild globe upside down - you'll see that geography is just a matter of personal perspective and in your case, prejudice.

      Of course there are economic challenges (ironically including a labor supply issue), just like there are in other countries, jut as various countries worldwide face world-wide issues such as the fall out from he Russia-Ukraine conflict (a culmination of years of foreign policy failure by the US and others, perhaps?!).

      But read the thread, buddy, the point of my comment was to present various data that show that the Australian economy has NOT been "killed" by COVID control measures as some, like @ Mak above erroneously claimed.

      There is a cohort of ignorant Americans out to prove that they didn't totally mess up the COVID response and those countries that managed the epidemic without mass slaughter necessarily stuffed up their economies - it ain't true. Face reality. The US lost over 1,000,000 million souls AND has a contracting economy.

      Australia has had its borders fully opened for some months with no pre-departure testing whereas the USA STILL requires a day-before test.

      Let alone the factual delusions of many herein, we get a laugh from the rank hypocrisy shown by some with such a limited understanding of the world around them.

  21. Jason Guest

    Despite the rhetoric, Qantas has no ability to support a LAX-AKL route. It does not have a strong point of sale presence in New Zealand, and the vast majority of people going to New Zealand on those flights are Americans going on vacation. That route lives and dies on the strength of Americans traveling to Auckland for vacation, and American Airlines should be able to support that.

    You dont mention all the other cuts...

    Despite the rhetoric, Qantas has no ability to support a LAX-AKL route. It does not have a strong point of sale presence in New Zealand, and the vast majority of people going to New Zealand on those flights are Americans going on vacation. That route lives and dies on the strength of Americans traveling to Auckland for vacation, and American Airlines should be able to support that.

    You dont mention all the other cuts as well that AA is pushing, or is that for another post?

    1. glenn t Diamond

      What rubbish you talk, @Jason!
      Qantas has absolutely no reason to even contemplate a LAX-AKL route. It has a super-strong LAX-SYD route, DFW-SYD, plus LAX-MEL. It offers practically daily shuttle services from multiple NZ cities to multiple Australia cities. It is also a partner with LATAM who do SCL-SYD via AKL.

    2. Iain Guest

      For many years Qantas in fact did operate a direct flight Melbourne-Auckland-Los Angeles.

    3. Andrew Diamond

      I agree with Iain - I've flown that route before. Post-Covid, and in the age of high uncertainty, it will take time for that demand to rebuild.

Featured Comments Most helpful comments ( as chosen by the OMAAT community ).

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RichM Diamond

"Killed their economies" - what are you smoking? Here in Western Australia, we shut our border for two years to not only the world, but also the rest of Australia. This allowed us to live COVID-free for two years with almost no lockdowns. We have since reopened and allowed COVID in (after our adult population was >98% vaccinated). The economy here is absolutely booming. The main constraint is that there is a shortage of labour to meet all the demand.

4
Mak Guest

Some destinations have effectively killed their economies to "control" Covid (i.e., New Zealand, Australia, Hong Kong) and travel to and from these destinations are never coming back to what they were. There are still people who can afford foreign travel for leisure, but business travel will be extremely limited for an extended and indeterminate period of time - maybe forever.

3
Leigh Guest

Your moronic comments are childish.

2
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