Travel Jun. 17, 2008 - 11:27AM JST ( 4 )

Customers flying on Air New Zealand’s Boeing 777 and 747 aircraft can now enjoy their personal seat-back entertainment system from the moment they sit down till the moment the aircraft lands. Previously the system could only be turned on once the aircraft was airborne and was turned off again early in descent to prepare the cabin for landing.

The enhancement provides on average an extra hour of viewing time per flight, which helps passengers enjoy more of the 250+ movies and TV programs and extensive CD library available on the system.

Air New Zealand Group General Manager International Airline Ed Sims said: “Customers can spend a significant amount of time in their seat prior to departure, especially with the time it takes to board a wide-body aircraft seating more than 300 people. There’s also up to half an hour prior to touch-down without access to the entertainment system.

“On short-haul flights across the Tasman or to the Pacific Islands where we sometimes use these aircraft, the impact of additional access time to enjoy the entertainment options is especially noticeable.”

Departure and arrival procedures have been reworked to accommodate safety briefings and in-flight announcements which pause the entertainment system, as well as other pertinent operational requirements including the few seats with in-arm video screens being stowed during takeoff for safety reasons.

From August, Air New Zealand’s short haul fleet of Boeing 767 and Airbus A320 aircraft will be progressively fitted with new on-demand touch-screen entertainment providing the same boarding to landing entertainment facilities.

As a result, by December all of Air New Zealand’s international short haul and long haul aircraft will have personal seat-back entertainment.