International airlines are starting new routes to the U.S. as borders relax Covid regulations. Among these is Air New Zealand, which is launching a nonstop between Auckland and New York beginning September 17. This will be ANZ’s first such flight, zipping over from JFK in a whopping 17.5 hours—slightly shorter than the longest flight in the world, Singapore Airlines’ 18 hours and 50 minutes between New York and Singapore. The 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft will arrive in Auckland at 7:30a.m. after departing JFK at 9:55 p.m.
Further, All Nippon Airways has resumed daily operations of its Airbus A380 Flying Honu between Japan and Hawaii. The popular Tokyo Narita–Honolulu route runs twice on weekends, while the Tokyo Haneda–Honolulu route, which expanded service in May, has increased to five round trips per week. ANA’s Flying Honu fleet uses three aircraft that can carry up to 520 passengers in four-class configurations.
