Air New Zealand announces investment for Ansett

Airline Industry Information, August 30, 2000

AIRLINE INDUSTRY INFORMATION-(C)1997-2000 M2 COMMUNICATIONS LTD

Air New Zealand has indicated that it will spend about AUD250m on a series of initiatives designed to improve the competitiveness of Ansett, an Australian carrier that it recently purchased.

The move follows poor performance by the Australian carrier in maintaining its market share in the domestic travel sector, with Ansett's share dropping from 46-47% last year to 42-43% now. The slump has been attributed to several factors, including scheduling, international traffic, amenities, service and connections. Air New Zealand's investment will likely be put into improving in-flight amenities and services in order to win back business travellers in particular.

Air New Zealand will also rationalise its IT systems with those of Ansett, reducing them from about 130 to 30 according to AFR Investment.

In related news, Ansett has lost a tender with the ANZ bank, which has switched its entire domestic account to Qantas Business Travel commencing in October. Previously the account was handled by Traveland and was split 50/50 between Qantas and Ansett.

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