Launch of New Airpoints" Bank Partners

Air New Zealand today announced the launch of the first new Airpoints Dollars™ banking partner in five years.

One in five Kiwis currently benefit from Air New Zealand’s Airpoints programme, which rewards customers with special privileges and allows them to accrue Airpoints Dollars that can be used to purchase any seat on any Air New Zealand flight.

Over the coming months a select number of new financial partners will be launched to enable more customers to earn Airpoints Dollars directly on their spend.

“Customers will now have greater freedom in selecting the best financial partner to suit their needs,” says Air New Zealand Chief Financial Officer Rob McDonald.

Air New Zealand’s first new partner is Kiwibank, who will launch the “Go Fly” MasterCard early next month.

The new credit card will allow cardholders to earn Airpoints Dollars every time they spend, as well as providing a facility for families to share Airpoints Dollars and access exclusive grabaseat flights.

“This partnership sees two iconic Kiwi brands coming together,” says Kiwibank’s Acting CEO Paul Brock.

“The scheme will enable Kiwibank to provide even more value to customers using our new credit card for their spending.”

BNZ’s GlobalPlus will continue to be a credit card partner, with a range of additional benefits for customers including the ability to earn status points on all credit card spend for Gold, Platinum and Business card holders.

“We will announce a third partner before the end of the year, as well as additional improvements to our loyalty programme that will further enhance our members’ ability to earn Airpoints Dollars,” says Mr McDonald.

With the expansion of financial partners, reward programme conversions of ASB True Rewards or Westpac Hotpoints into Airpoints Dollars will no longer be available from 30 October and 8 November 2009 respectively.

The launch of new financial partners follows on from a series of new customer-led initiatives last year which earned Air New Zealand the Global Loyalty Innovation Award by Airline Business.

The initiatives included:
Airpoints members earning Status Points on every flight including Smart Saver and grabseat fares
Gold Elite, Gold, Silver and Koru members provided with a new ePass to help them speed through the domestic airport
The launch of www.myairnz.co.nz, a secure homepage on the Air New Zealand website for loyalty members to tailor their online booking page
The introduction of Space + seating in 767, A320 and 737 aircraft for Gold Elite, Gold and Silver Airpoints and Koru members.