Air New Zealand will launch Skynest, its industry-first economy sleeper product, on two U.S. routes.
Skynest will debut in 2024 on the carrier's Auckland-New York JFK and Auckland-Chicago O'Hare routes. Air New Zealand operates both services with Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners.
The carrier made the announcement during Tourism New Zealand's annual Trenz conference this week in Christchurch.
Skynest, offering the first lie-flat economy sleepers in the sky, will be an enclosed pod of six bunks separated into two stacked rows of three. Air New Zealand revealed Tuesday that it will locate the pod between its economy and premium economy cabins.
The carrier said it is still working through the details of how the booking process will work, but it anticipates flyers purchasing Skynest bunks for four-hour blocks at a cost of $400 to $600. Transition times between each session will be approximately 30 minutes, allowing for cleaning and bedding changes.
Flight times on the Auckland-Chicago and Auckland-New York routes are approximately 15 hours and 16 hours respectively.