Jetstar grounds Auckland flights for tourism low season
More than 15,500 seats on flights between Cairns and Auckland have been put on hold as Jetstar suspends the service during the tourism low season.
Cairns Mayor Val Schier said the door was open to other airlines to pick up the potential shortfall of services that Jetstar had left.
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Passengers who had already booked tickets were contacted last week and told all flights on the trans-Tasman route would be cancelled between October 30 and April 3. Although Cairns outperformed the rest of the country in terms of attracting tourists from New Zealand last year, Jetstar said it suspended the route because of low passenger numbers.
The airline said it was offering to re-route passengers via other services the same or next day, or provide a refund. Dennis Tuttle booked a Jetstar flight to Auckland in July and had already paid for accommodation, but he and his wife had to make last-minute arrangements with another airline when their flight was axed. "To be told at this late stage, it’s very inconvenient and it cost us an extra $180," Mr Tuttle said. "It was pretty lousy – for a couple of days, I wondered where these guys were coming from."
Despite promises from the airline, Mr Tuttle said there was no mention of discounts on future flights when he spoke to a Jetstar staff member last week. "They have not contacted me or sent me an email or anything," he said. Tourism Tropical North Queensland chief Rob Giason said the announcement was disappointing, but TTNQ would work with Jetstar to restore full capacity to the route.
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