Air NZ cuts airfares in and out of Gisborne and Napier after Cyclone Gabrielle

Air New Zealand has dropped the price of travelling to and from Gisborne and Napier to assist recovery efforts in the communities hit hardest by .

Chief customer and sales officer Leanne Geraghty said the lower fares would be available on all flights into and out of the towns until February 28.

“As the extent of the damage to the Tairāwhiti and Hawke’s Bay regions becomes clearer, and we see the damage to roads connecting those areas, we know air travel will be more important than ever,” she said.

and there were now nine daily flights into and out of Gisborne and about 18 services a day to Napier except on weekends where there were 14 daily flights.

The new price on all domestic flights into or out of Gisborne and Napier were $55 one way for a “seat only” fare or $105 if the journey required two connecting domestic flights.

A ‘seat and bag’ option cost $75 one way for a flight or $125 if the journey required two connecting domestic flights.

The new fares were in addition to fare flexibility announced last week, meaning flights could be changed until March 5 without fees.

Customers could also choose to reroute their flight to another domestic destination without facing additional charges.

It comes after a week of widespread weather-related disruptions including cancellations to Auckland and New Plymouth.

By Wednesday, impacting 49,000 customers, as a result of the storm.

So far and police have still missing.

Most of the 1500 displaced people, mostly in Hawke’s Bay and as of 9pm Friday, there were 4928 reports of uncontactable people registered.

As of Saturday, 39,000 homes in Hawke's Bay remained without power.