This past weekend, my family and I were in New Zealand’s North Island for an early Christmas party, so we took the opportunity to enjoy New Zealand’s newest regional jet service, which connects the city of Hamilton Airport (HLZ) to Christchurch Airport (CHC) in just over an hour, compared to two hours when traveling on the more traditional turboprop. On Sunday, December 8, our booking was on flight 325 from HLZ to CHC, onboard an Airbus A320ceo with Air New Zealand.

The carrier has historically operated the ATR 72-600 on the route, with multiple return flights per day. However, it decided to break the mould recently, announcing plans to deploy its larger Airbus A320neo on the route once daily in the afternoon. The new jet service took off on September 18.

Check-In

I was traveling in a group of three, including two adults and one child. This meant we decided to arrive at the airport approximately one and a half hours before boarding, well in advance of the 30-minute deadline that is required for bag check. We walked into the terminal at 3:20 pm and were at the kiosk in no time, checking our bags, which included a child’s car booster seat.

Due to being booked on multiple booking references, our seating was scattered, and all three passengers had been auto-allocated various seating across the aircraft. Due to traveling with a four-year-old, I asked for support from an Air New Zealand representative, who was able to move us all into row 8. Bags were tagged, and before we knew it, we had our boarding passes in hand and were heading for aviation security.

At the time, our flight to Christchurch was the last nonstop service of the day, which led to the terminal being very quiet, especially given our early arrival at the airport. The Jetstar check-in kiosks remained unattended, given their flights were over for the day; however, multiple Air New Zealand ground team members were on hand to help passengers.

Departure Airport Experience

Hamilton Airport (HLZ) is located on the outskirts of Hamilton City, approximately halfway between Hamilton and neighbouring Cambridge. The airport welcomes scheduled flights from Air New Zealand and Sunair (domestic), while Jetstar has recently touched down at the airport, offering trans-Tasman services to Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport (SYD) and Gold Coast Airport (OOL) multiple times a week. The airline also offers nonstop services to Christchurch daily.

In New Zealand, regional turboprop flights do not require passengers to pass through airport security; however, those booked on jet services are mandated to clear security. Due to the nature and size of HLZ, the airport has cleverly designed its new ‘jet’ wing of the terminal to cater to both international and domestic jet passengers.

We cleared through aviation security, where the border and duty-free zone were just beyond, but were closed off. Instead, domestic jet passengers are asked to pass through a side entry door which provides direct access to the jet lounge (which includes a cafe, vending machines, seating, and toilets.

Inside The Lounge

As already mentioned, the lounge is located just past airport security and is mixed-use for both domestic and international passengers. Should an international flight be scheduled, there is a door that can separate both domestic and international passengers past security; however, given our flight was approximately 90% full, I could only imagine that the terminal could feel congested if multiple flights were operating at the same time.

As an Air New Zealand frequent flier, there is an Air New Zealand Lounge in the terminal, which can be accessed by purchasing a lounge membership or having an eligible status; however, it is located on the landside portion of the terminal (also catering for domestic turbo-prop services). Today, we did not access this lounge because it made more sense to be ready and waiting airside, past security, for our upcoming flight.

While we were airside, we made the most of the conveniently located cafe, which offered a range of food and beverage options, including hot food such as fries, and freshly baked goods, plus a selection of cold and hot beverages (such as beer, wine, soda, water, coffee, tea, and hot chocolates). The service was quick and reasonably priced for airport food.

Coming Onboard

Due to the late arrival of our inbound flight, our scheduled departure time of 5:00 pm was pushed back by about 20 minutes. Boarding was expected at 4:35 pm; however, it only commenced at 4:55 pm. Traveling with a young family has its perks, and we were among the first onboard, making finding our seats and stowing our bags a breeze.

Due to Hamilton receiving limited jet flights, all boarding is done by outdoor stairs, and both the front and back boarded this flight. We were onboard by 4:57 pm, at our seats one minute later, with belongings safely stowed. The rest of the passengers also followed, and everyone was fully boarded by 5:05 pm.

Remaining overhead lockers were closed by the four flight attendants at 5:07 pm, before an announcement was made over the intercom that a passenger had forgotten their toiletry bag in the terminal; however, the friendly airport and flight crew got this to the passenger, and doors were closed and cross-checked by 5:11 pm.

The Seat

We were seated in Row 8 and had only one other passenger in our row. This gave us plenty of legroom and space to stretch out. I decided to sit across the row from our party to leave more space for personal items.

The A320 is configured in an all-economy-class layout. Onboard, the aircraft and seating were clean and tidy, and the seatback pocket contained a complimentary Kia ora magazine (Air New Zealand magazine), a sick bag, and emergency instructions. These seats have limited recline.

The flight taxied away from the terminal at 5:18 pm, and was set for take-off at 17:22. The crew were up shortly after that, preparing the inflight catering, and the seatbelt sign was turned off by 5:28 pm.

IFE & Connectivity

While inflight WiFi is available on select Air New Zealand flights, it was not on offer for our flight to Christchurch. The seats also do not offer any personal charging ports.

Instead, you can enjoy the inflight magazine, which features a range of Air New Zealand destinations and guides, or sit back and watch the ‘Great Kiwi Quiz’, which is shared on the communal monitors.

Given the flight was only an hour gate-to-gate, this suited us just fine, and I connected my Bluetooth noise-cancelling headphones to my personal phone and listened to music.

Inflight Service

A Christchurch-based crew was working the flight, including four flight attendants, accompanied by the captain and co-captain. The inflight Service Manager, Jenny, welcomed all passengers warmly onboard and completed all necessary announcements.

There had been no notable apology from the airline for the service’s late running, even though the delay was only marginal. Our captain, whose name I did not catch, updated us on the progress of our flight at 6:01 pm. Data from Flightradar24 for the flight shows the delay was due to the inbound flight’s service running late, which departed with a delay.

Meals And Beverages

Domestically, Air New Zealand passengers are offered a light drink and snack service, which includes the choice of coffee, tea, and water. Today I opted for a cup of tea with a splash of milk.

The meal choices included the Cookie Time cookies, which featured a Christmas-themed flavor of brandy snap and white chocolate. This was just one of the options, with others including cheese puffs, Graze berry merry nut mix, or BBQ dry noodle mix (which are gluten and dairy-free). I was offered these at 5:39 pm.

Arrival Airport Experience

Our flight was uneventful for the first 40 minutes. The captain began his descent at around 6:01 pm, and the cabin crew were seated for landing at 6:08 pm. Shortly after this, the aircraft experienced turbulence for about five minutes. This was somewhat uncomfortable; however, the crew were friendly and reminded passengers where to locate a sick bag if required.

The aircraft descended into the Northeasterly winds above North Canterbury, before a large jolt saw the captain decide to ascend quickly once more to avoid the rough airspace. The aircraft eventually landed at Christchurch at 6:23 pm. Ironically, two minutes ahead of schedule. We arrived at the gate at 6:28 pm, and we got off the plane by 6:32 pm.

Our bags were at the carousel within approximately 15 minutes after arrival. The terminal was roomy and spacious, and those waiting at the belt were for our flight, and other recent jet services that had arrived from Wellington Airport (WLG) and Auckland Airport (AKL).

The Flight Details

Our flight was operated by an Air New Zealand Airbus A320ceo, decked out in an all-black Air New Zealand livery. Air New Zealand has a select few aircraft with this design in its fleet, so it’s always a treat to fly on one. The aircraft was delivered to Air New Zealand in February 2011 and wears registration ZK-OAB.

This aircraft was first registered under Airbus test registration F-WWDF and took its first test flight on December 22, 2010. The aircraft has since operated for Air New Zealand under a lease agreement with Airlease (according to ch-aviation). The aircraft is powered by two IAE V2527-A5 engines, and is configured to carry 171 passengers in an all economy-class layout.