Nearly 55,000 people were flying with Air New Zealand on Thursday. Photo: 123rf.com
Airports will be chock-a-block all Easter weekend, with hundreds of thousands of travellers taking to the sky.
Thursday is the busiest day for Air New Zealand, with nearly 55,000 passengers booked on flights.
All up, 227,000 travellers will travel with the airline this long weekend.
Domestic general manager Iain Walker told Checkpoint Thursday had been a "very busy day", with "a lot of people hopping around the country".
There had been some "weather challenges", particularly in windy Wellington, but the airline was working hard to get everyone where they needed to go, he said.
"We're recommending people arrive a bit earlier for the airport, just be a bit patient" - Iain Walker
Out of 550 flights, 15 had been cancelled - mostly due to weather, but one aircraft was out of action after a bird strike on Wednesday.
Affected customers were being offered later flights, Walker said.
"Pretty much everyone will be able to fly today."
Anyone flying over the weekend was asked to get to the airport a little earlier than normal to allow time to get through security.
No major queues had been reported, but it was best for people's peace of mind to allow extra time - especially for those travelling with children, Walker said.
"It just takes away that panic."
School holidays begin on 13 April and Walker said 800,000 passengers would be catching Air New Zealand flights.
That figure included 4000 unaccompanied minors.
The number one destination for the school holidays was Queenstown, which was "very popular", he said.