There would not be a big market for these ultra long range planes.Īir New Zealand chief executive Christopher Luxon says his airline will send out a request for information to plane makers later this year for them to pitch their aircraft. 'The overall operating conditions are not that different from Qantas - if there is a solution here it's likely that others will benefit as well.'' ''If we develop a solution for Qantas that would be available for others,'' Schulz said. The two Australasian airlines last Friday surprised observers by signing a code-share deal on each other's respective domestic routes and said that could lead them to work more closely together on some technical projects.Įric Schulz, chief commercial officer for Airbus, said his company was in constant communication with Air New Zealand. The A350-10, about to be delivered to Cathay Pacific, is also being promoted as a solution to the range needs of Qantas and Air New Zealand. The A350ULR has a published range 9700 miles (17964.4km) and from October will serve a record-breaking route between Singapore and New York, but the premium-heavy configuration for the 19-hour flight means there are just 161 seats.