Upcoming Changes to Chatham Islands Air Services
Air Chathams is preparing to make a significant change to the way we operate air services to and from the Chatham Islands.
This is an important update for the Chatham Islands community, and we want to explain clearly what is changing, why we are making the change, and what it will mean for passenger travel, freight, reliability, tourism, and our long-term commitment to the island.
Moving from the ATR to a Saab-based Chatham Islands operation
Air Chathams has made the decision to sell one of our ATR 72 aircraft and move the Chatham Islands operation to a Saab-based model.
This is not a decision we have taken lightly. The ATR has served the island well and has provided important passenger and freight capacity over many years. However, the reality is that the aircraft is expensive to own and maintain, and it is not achieving the level of annual utilisation required to justify the high cost of keeping it in the fleet.
The ATR is a larger, higher-value aircraft, and major maintenance events can create significant cost and cash pressure for the airline. At the same time, there is currently strong overseas demand for ATR aircraft and parts. Because these sales are generally transacted in US dollars, the current weaker New Zealand dollar also means that the timing is favourable for Air Chathams to realise strong value from the sale.
In plain terms, this is the right time to sell one ATR, reduce financial risk, and reinvest in a more sustainable and more frequent air service model for the Chatham Islands.
A better schedule for the Chatham Islands
The most important part of this change is not simply the aircraft type. It is the improvement in frequency, flexibility, and connectivity for the Chatham Islands community.
Instead of relying primarily on the ATR operation, Air Chathams will move to a model using two Saab aircraft:
One Saab passenger aircraft, operating more frequent scheduled passenger services between the Chatham Islands, Wellington, and Christchurch.
One Saab freighter aircraft, based on the Chatham Islands and available for dedicated freight flying as required.
The change from the current ATR schedule to the new Saab schedule is planned to take effect from the 5th October 2026.
This timing allows Air Chathams to complete the necessary aircraft, crew, engineering, scheduling, and customer communication work ahead of the summer season. Until that date, the current ATR-based schedule will continue.
Our planned Saab passenger schedule from 5th October 2026 will be:
Chatham Islands – Wellington – Chatham Islands Monday, Wednesday, and Friday
Chatham Islands – Christchurch – Chatham Islands Tuesday and Thursday
This will provide the island with a much more regular pattern of flights across the week, giving residents, visitors, businesses, medical travellers, and service providers more flexibility than the current schedule.
We expect to increase frequency slightly during peak demand periods where required, and we may reduce frequency slightly during quieter winter periods when demand is lower. The aim is to provide a schedule that better matches the needs of the island, while also being commercially sustainable for the airline.
Air Chathams will provide further updates to the community as we get closer to the transition date, including confirmed flight times, booking arrangements, and any changes to freight booking processes.
Connecting the Chatham Islands to the national network
Another important reason for making this change is the upcoming expansion of Air Chathams’ interline arrangement with Air New Zealand, which is expected to go live in August.
This will be a major step forward for Chatham Islands connectivity.
Once live, the interline arrangement will allow customers to book interconnected journeys between the Chatham Islands and any domestic port serviced by Air New Zealand, using Wellington and Christchurch as the main connection points.
That means passengers will be able to travel between the Chatham Islands and destinations across the Air New Zealand domestic network on a more connected basis, rather than having to manage completely separate travel arrangements.
This is one of the key reasons we are focusing the scheduled Saab passenger operation through Wellington and Christchurch. These ports provide strong onward connection opportunities across New Zealand, while also being better suited to Saab 340 operations.
As part of this change, Air Chathams will no longer operate the regular weekly scheduled service between Auckland and the Chatham Islands. The Saab 340 is not the right aircraft to operate that length of route on a regular scheduled basis, and Wellington and Christchurch provide a more practical and efficient operating model for the Saab fleet.
However, Auckland will not be disconnected from the Chatham Islands entirely.
We understand how important the direct Auckland–Chatham Islands service is during the peak summer tourism season, particularly for local tourism operators and the established seven-day tour packages that rely on direct Auckland access.
For that reason, Air Chathams intends to continue operating direct Auckland–Chatham Islands services during peak summer periods on our remaining ATR fleet to support the local tourism industry and ensure those important visitor itineraries can continue.
Freight will remain a major focus
Freight is a critical part of the Chatham Islands air service. It supports local businesses, seafood exports, essential supplies, and the wider island economy.
Under the new model, freight will continue to be strongly supported. The dedicated Saab freighter will be based on the Chatham Islands and will operate ad hoc freight charters between the Chathams and both Wellington and Auckland as required.
This will give us greater flexibility to move freight when and where it is needed, rather than relying only on available space within scheduled passenger services.
More investment on the island
This change is also about building a stronger and more resilient Chatham Islands operation.
Over the next 12 months, Air Chathams intends to increase its on-island resources. This will include working towards having more island-based flight crew capability and establishing fully licensed engineering support on the island.
We will also be investing in our airport hangar facilities so that more maintenance support can be carried out locally on the Chatham Islands.
These investments are important. They will help improve reliability, reduce the impact of disruptions, and provide better operational resilience for the island. Weather, engineering, crew availability, and logistics will always be challenging in a remote island operation, but basing more resources locally gives us a better chance of recovering quickly when issues arise.
What this means for reliability
The Saab aircraft is well suited to the Chatham Islands operation. Air Chathams has many years of experience operating and maintaining the Saab fleet, and we have built strong internal capability around this aircraft type.
A Saab-based model also allows us to spread risk across more aircraft and more crew, rather than relying heavily on a single larger aircraft. This should improve our ability to recover from disruption and maintain continuity of service.
The ATR can carry more in one flight, but the Saab model allows for more frequent flying, faster turnaround times, dedicated freight support, and a more flexible weekly schedule.
Cessna 206 update
We also want to advise the community that the Cessna 206 aircraft that serves the Pitt Island community will depart the Chatham Islands at the end of July and fly to Auckland for a heavy maintenance visit.
This maintenance visit is expected to take approximately two months.
The work will include addressing the ongoing effects of the Chatham Islands’ atmospheric conditions, particularly corrosion-related issues, and giving the aircraft a thorough maintenance overhaul before it returns to the island.
Our current aim is for the Cessna 206 to return to the Chatham Islands around the end of September.
We apologise for any inconvenience caused here but it is essential we maintain this aircraft in a similar way to our larger operating fleet.
Our commitment remains unchanged
Air Chathams’ commitment to the Chatham Islands remains as strong as ever.
This change is being made to ensure we can continue providing a reliable, practical, and sustainable air service for the island into the future. The Chatham Islands operation is unique, and it requires an operating model that properly reflects the needs of the community, the importance of freight, the challenges of remote aviation, tourism, and the financial realities of running a regional airline.
The change will provide more frequent passenger services, dedicated freight capability, improved national connectivity through Air New Zealand’s domestic network, stronger on-island support, and a more resilient operating model for the years ahead.