Texans Can Now Fly Nonstop to New Zealand on This New American Airlines Route

Americans are running out of reasons to put off that dream trip to New Zealand. After Air New Zealand launched its first nonstop route from New York City's John F. Kennedy Airport to Auckland, the largest city on New Zealand's North Island, this September, American Airlines is following suit.

The Fort Worth-based carrier launched its first nonstop route from Dallas Fort Worth International Airport to Auckland this week, completing the 7,464-mile trip in approximately 15 hours. The route's return trip clocked in at about 13 hours and 45 minutes, according to reporting by Simple Flying.

It's a celebratory moment for the airline, which has finally launched the route after years of delays. American originally announced the new route in October 2019, with flights scheduled to begin a year later. American Airlines and Dallas-Fort Worth officials had high hopes that the route would become a staple of the airline's efforts to turn Dallas-Fort Worth Airport into a "trans-Pacific hub" that would see North Texas become the primary connecting route for air traffic between the U.S. and Asia.

Like many airlines, American had to delay the route in 2020 as New Zealand enacted some of the world's most restrictive pandemic protocols. Then, as the airline ramped up international trips in 2021, long-haul, wide-body jets such as the 787 became challenging to acquire due to pandemic-related production delays at airplane manufacturer Boeing, delaying the launch even further.

The flight runs daily and is currently the only flight between the Dallas-Fort Worth area and New Zealand and the only U.S. flight to New Zealand within the oneworld alliance. The seasonal route is scheduled to run through March of 2023.