Prepare for long queues

Wellington Airport is preparing for its busiest holiday season in two years as the nation heads into its first summer without pandemic-related restrictions limiting air travel. Airlines are scheduled to fill more than a million seats per month through Wellington in both December and January. The busiest day is expected to be Friday December 23rd with 21,000 passengers. ‘‘Christmas is always a busy and exciting time for airports, and this year will be especially busy as the global travel industry recovers from the effects of Covid-19,’’ said Wellington Airport spokesperson Phil Rennie. The airport is back to 91% of its pre-Covid domestic capacity and 66% for international capacity. Qantas, Jetstar and Fiji Airways have returned to their full pre-Covid international schedule while Air New Zealand are operating at more than 100% of their preCovid domestic schedule, and 85% of their preCovid international schedule. Like many others, the air industry is still suffering from staff shortages and despite the increased demand from passengers, Rennie said it’s been a struggle to employ people. Rennie said it’s unlikely Wellington will see any ‘airmaggedon’ scenario like larger airports have experienced.