Air New Zealand has defended its new Christchurch-Perth route while regional communities continue to question flight reductions and rising travel costs.
The airline has faced scrutiny over reduced services in some regions. A Christchurch-Perth route has been defended as commercially justified.
High fuel prices and network profitability remain major factors in route decisions.
The debate shows the tension between running an airline commercially and maintaining the connectivity regional New Zealand relies on.
The key question is how the network rebalances as international demand keeps shifting.
