Qantas and Air New Zealand Will End Their Domestic Codeshare on April 7, 2027

Qantas and Air New Zealand will end their domestic codeshare partnership on April 7, 2027, closing an arrangement that has linked the two national carriers' home networks since 2018. The decision comes as Air New Zealand prepares a new strategic alliance with Virgin Australia, Qantas' main domestic rival.

What the partnership covered

Launched in June 2018, the Qantas–Air New Zealand deal allowed Qantas to place its code on Air New Zealand's domestic flights within New Zealand, while Air New Zealand did the same on Qantas domestic flights within Australia. Trans-Tasman and other international flights were excluded from the agreement, according to Executive Traveller.

The arrangement let Qantas Frequent Flyer members earn points and status credits on Air New Zealand's domestic network and book points-based Classic Flight Rewards on those services. Eligible members could also use Air New Zealand lounges.

The partnership was struck under former chief executives Alan Joyce of Qantas and Chris Luxon of Air New Zealand, and followed Air New Zealand's exit from its earlier alliance with Virgin Australia. "A codeshare deal on our domestic markets makes sense for our customers because it leverages the strengths we each have in our home markets," Joyce said at the time.

What happens to existing bookings

Qantas is advising customers that codeshare flights operated by Air New Zealand will no longer be available to book from April 7, 2027. Travellers booked to fly before that date will not be affected, and eligible members can keep using Air New Zealand lounges until then.

Passengers holding a Qantas codeshare booking on an Air New Zealand-operated flight on or after April 7, 2027, will have their itinerary updated by Qantas or their travel agent to a flight with an Air New Zealand flight number. Qantas says Frequent Flyer members will still earn the Qantas Points and Status Credits they would have received on the original booking. Classic Flight Reward seats on the partnership will remain bookable until April 6, 2027.

LoyaltyLobby also reported the April 7, 2027 end date, noting that affected bookings will be moved onto Air New Zealand flight numbers.

Air New Zealand turns back to Virgin Australia

The end of the Qantas deal clears the way for Air New Zealand's planned alliance with Virgin Australia. As previously reported by Executive Traveller, the proposed Virgin Australia–Air New Zealand alliance would offer frequent flyer earning and status benefits across each airline's network, including on flights without a codeshare, such as Air New Zealand's Auckland–New York service. Status perks would include lounge access, extra baggage allowance, priority check-in, priority boarding and priority baggage.

For Air New Zealand, the shift marks a return to Virgin Australia, the partner it left before signing with Qantas in 2018. The new alliance still needs to be fully set out, but Executive Traveller reports that the frequent flyer benefits would extend well beyond the domestic codeshare scope of the outgoing Qantas deal.

A shifting trans-Tasman landscape

The move reshapes partnerships across one of the world's most closely linked aviation markets. Qantas runs a large Boeing 737-800 domestic fleet in Australia, while Air New Zealand flies Airbus A320neo-family jets and turboprops at home and on the Tasman, alongside its Boeing 787-9 long-haul fleet.

For Qantas Frequent Flyer members who regularly travel within New Zealand, the change means fewer ways to earn and redeem points on Air New Zealand's domestic network from April 2027, unless Qantas strikes another arrangement. For Air New Zealand, re-aligning with Virgin Australia offers its Airpoints members a wider Australian domestic network to connect to and from the Tasman.

Neither airline has indicated any change to its own trans-Tasman flying as a result of the decision. Existing bookings before April 7, 2027 remain unchanged.