Passengers flying on Jetstar will have to get to the airport earlier as the airline has made some changes to their check-in process.
Starting from May 23, the airline announced that bag drop and gate closure times for Jetstar flights will close ten minutes earlier on flights in Australia and New Zealand. This means that passengers will have to check in forty minutes before domestic flights and sixty minutes before international flights. Gates will now close twenty minutes before take-off.
Matt Franzi, Jetstar’s chief operating officer, said they made the change to improve their ability to send their flights off on time.
“We know our performance hasn’t been up to scratch and we are working hard to boost punctuality and reliability,” he said, as reported by Stuff. “To improve our performance, we’re also recruiting more airport staff, cabin crew and engineering team members.”
Every month, the Australian Department of Infrastructure Transport and Regional Development publishes a report on which airlines are the most and least punctual with flight arrivals and departures.
In April, Jetstar was dead last with 38% of arrivals and over 40% of departures being late. Their 7.5% cancellation was also the highest, compared to the 3.6% average of all the other airlines in Australia.
Aotearoa’s other main airline is making its own change, but this one has all to do with the in-flight experience.
Air New Zealand is looking to change up the snacks they serve during flights, with some Kiwi favourites potentially making the menu.
Kiwi Onion Dip, Sausage snags, L&P gummies and more made the shortlist for the ‘Great Kiwi Snack Off’, which is thirteen food items long. Expressions of interest have already closed so if the airline does end up changing the snack, it will be one of those thirteen.
Personally, I’d love to see the Kiwi Onion Dip with veggie dippers get the nod. It would be great for Rosemary Dempsey, who made the dip over 60 years ago, to see her creation travel the world!
