Australians will soon have a new way to fly to South America – and the airline that will carry them isn’t an Aussie, Kiwi or Latin American carrier.
In June, Auckland Airport announced that one of Asia’s largest carriers, China Eastern Airlines, intends to launch flights connecting China with Argentina via New Zealand.
Expected to launch in December 2025, the new service will initially operate two times per week, flying Shanghai (Pudong)-Auckland-Buenos Aires (Ezeiza).
Revealed at a ceremony in Shanghai attended by New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, the new route is predicted to boost tourism to New Zealand from China and potentially, South America.
But more importantly, for Australian travellers, the service will introduce a new way for Aussies to fly to South America – specifically Buenos Aires – non-stop from an Australasian port.
Currently, the easiest way for Australians to reach Argentina is via Santiago (Chile), flying Qantas or LATAM. For Australians flying from somewhere other than Sydney or Melbourne, a minimum of two stops is required (unless they’re flying a very roundabout way via the US).
So with the new China Eastern service, the vast majority of Aussies can fly to Argentina with just one layover – and for many, a preferred stop – in Auckland.
“More appealing”
Luxury travel advisor Geoff Currie says the new China Eastern Airlines service would be “a great option to get to Argentina… and [flying] direct from Auckland makes it more appealing”.
“This will also break the duopoly with Qantas and LATAM, and their excessive fares,” he tells Karryon.
“MU [China Eastern] is always known for being very price effective, and a decent product… [so] this will open up a new gateway to Argentina and South America.
“Once loaded into the GDS, hopefully it will be a very easy and simple product to promote,” he adds.
NZ PM Luxon said the new route linking “the dynamic economies of Asia and South America, is a great step forward and will support a more resilient and diverse aviation network that benefits travellers, trade, and tourism”.
“As a country we are working hard to grow tourism back to 2019 levels and beyond, because doing so will drive economic growth right across the country,” he said.
“This new route is estimated to bring an additional $48 million in annual visitor spend to New Zealand.”
The new flights will add to China Eastern’s current daily Shanghai-Auckland route. The Chinese airline, which has flown to New Zealand for more than a decade, also operates Hangzhou-Auckland flights as well as a Hangzhou-Auckland service via Sydney.
Ambitious Auckland
Auckland Airport CEO Carrie Hurihanganui said the Chinese carrier offers the greatest number of flights between New Zealand and China.
“This network connectivity – the Southern Link – is something we’ve been working towards for a number of years so it’s wonderful to see it become a reality through the work of China Eastern Airlines with support from Auckland Airport and the New Zealand Government,” she remarked.
“It’s fantastic news for New Zealand’s tourism and trade ambitions. While we have rebuilt our aviation connections with China, visitation is still recovering. Additional flights from Shanghai Pudong, a major globally connected hub, supports more travellers not just direct from China but also those connecting via Shanghai from across Asia and Europe into Auckland.”
Auckland Airport recently upgraded its transit facilities, expanding space by 80 per cent for the 700,000 passengers who currently transit through the hub every year.
“Our geographic location provides an ideal stepping stone between Australia, Asia, South Pacific and both North and South America,” the AKL boss said.
Earlier this year, Auckland Airport was named the third third-best airport in the Australia/Pacific region for 2025. Read more about that here.
