Adam Thorn

The Australian airline has made an audacious pitch to woo Air New Zealand frequent flyers by allowing top-tier members to be fast-tracked onto its own loyalty scheme.

The airline group also said it would launch two new routes from Auckland to Cairns and the Gold Coast alongside restarting all its traditional routes.

Air New Zealand is set to operate up to five daily flights between Sydney and Auckland when the trans-Tasman bubble opens on 19 April.

The airline has surprisingly announced it won’t fly most of its New Zealand routes until 31 October, despite quarantine-free travel from Australia beginning on 19 April.

PM Jacinda Ardern said the decision to launch quarantine-free travel was made because the risk of transmission was low and the Queensland outbreak had been contained.

Corporal Daniel Loane won the prestigious award for his response to a civilian vehicle accident near the remote Northern Territory checkpoint.