Air NZ receives first upgraded 787

[markis10]

18 months of research. 2,500 hours of customer testing. 184 days in Singapore. One exceptional new onboard experience. Air New Zealand's very first retrofitted Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner officially touched down in Auckland (…on the 16th)

The aircraft spent the past 184 days in Singapore receiving the ultimate cabin glow-up as it was retrofitted with all-new cabin interiors, including the new Business Premier Luxe seat, and redesigned Business Premier, Premium Economy, and Economy cabins. The aircraft, ZK-NZH, is the first in the airline's 787–9 fleet to undergo this world-first, full nose-to-tail retrofit.

Air New Zealand Chief Commercial Officer Jeremy O'Brien says the aircraft's arrival is an exciting moment in the airline's 85-year history.

"Seeing the first of our 14 Dreamliners to undergo this transformation arrive home is a huge moment for our people, our customers, and the future of Air New Zealand. We're so proud to deliver this new experience for those who fly with us around the world.

Runway Ready: Air New Zealand’s first retrofitted Dreamliner touches down

18 months of research. 2,500 hours of customer testing. 184 days in Singapore. One exceptional new onboard experience. Air New Zealand’s very first retrofitted Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner officially touched down in Auckland yesterday.

www.airnewzealandnewsroom.com

 

[NZflygirl]

Any tips on chasing these type of flights? I know it will fly across the ditch initially. Is checking flightradar24 good enough? I'm guessing you'd only see it a couple of days out which = expensive fares.

Not sure I want to check every Auckland - BNE/SYD etc flight every day to see if the seat map pops up for business.

I'm not after the inaugural flight but something straight after that. If things work out.

 

[markis10]

Maybe reach out to NZ social media and ask what’s the planned intro details, seat maps seem to indicate AKL-SYD on the 103/4 rotation on Friday 16th

 

[NZflygirl]

I have a feeling they're not going to spill the beans to me on social media. Maybe not until after the inaugural flight. Here's a snippet from the website you linked to. I think the above is version 2 of the 787. The new config should have 26 business class seats. I thought row 1 was going to be BP luxe and because there's 4 I assumed it would be a 1-2-1 layout. Nothing on the seat maps works for May. There are some dates where PE and J are blocked for Sydney and Brisbane in May. None to Melbourne but the dates are all showing the old configs. I just thought someone might know some informative website I wasn't aware of.

 

[DC3]

Not sure I want to check every Auckland - BNE/SYD etc flight every day to see if the seat map pops up for business.

 

[henrus]

Maybe reach out to NZ social media and ask what’s the planned intro details, seat maps seem to indicate AKL-SYD on the 103/4 rotation on Friday 16thView attachment 441047

That's just the regular V2 config (the one with more J seats).

Boeing 787-9 V2

The extraordinary new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner is a revolutionary aircraft with a focus on cabin comfort.

www.airnewzealand.com.au

Apparently the first flight is blocked in J/PE but still for sale in Y.

 

[DC3]

I have a feeling they're not going to spill the beans to me …