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Air New Zealand is once again turning the skies into a dance floor, confirming it will transform charter flight NZ1212 from Auckland to Christchurch into a full-scale SYNTHONY rave at 30,000 feet this May, as fans head south for the sold-out Once In A Lifetime concert at Christchurch’s new national stadium.
A Charter Flight That Doubles as an Opening Act
Scheduled for Friday 15 May 2026, flight NZ1212 will depart Auckland as a one-way charter and arrive in Christchurch with passengers already several tracks deep into their festival weekend. The airline is positioning the experience as the unofficial opening act for the Once In A Lifetime concert at One New Zealand Stadium, headlined by New Zealand stadium mainstays Six60 alongside the orchestral electronic juggernaut SYNTHONY.
From the moment boarding begins, the cabin will shift from standard pre-flight routine to pre-concert build-up. Lighting, sound and a curated live set from SYNTHONY performers will turn the narrowbody jet into a club in the sky, giving 200-odd passengers what the airline describes as a “warmup act at 30,000 feet.” Rather than treating the flight as simple transport, Air New Zealand is folding the journey itself into the headline event.
The NZ1212 charter follows the success of the airline’s first SYNTHONY in the Sky experience in November 2025, when flight NZ1331 from Auckland to Sydney was converted into an inflight rave that sold out within hours and drew widespread attention across both aviation and entertainment circles. This second edition brings the concept home to a domestic route and pairs it with a landmark moment for Christchurch’s live music scene.
Tickets, Inclusions and What Passengers Get
Seats on NZ1212 are being sold as a bundled experience rather than a conventional fare. Priced at 489 New Zealand dollars one way, each ticket includes the charter flight from Auckland to Christchurch, a general admission standing ticket to SYNTHONY’s Once In A Lifetime concert at One New Zealand Stadium on Saturday 16 May, access to part of SYNTHONY’s pre-show soundcheck, and an intimate Six60 acoustic performance in Christchurch reserved exclusively for SYNTHONY in the Sky passengers.
Capacity on the charter is strictly limited, with Air New Zealand warning that once the dedicated inventory is gone, no further seats will be released. The airline is marketing NZ1212 as a one-off flight tied to a single weekend, meaning fans will need to arrange their own return journeys and accommodation around the Christchurch events. Status benefits such as lounge access will still apply for eligible frequent flyers, but the focus is firmly on the shared experience rather than cabin differentiation.
Onboard, passengers can expect a rolling program of live performances featuring SYNTHONY talent and guest artists, with the airline teasing “plenty of surprises along the way.” While exact set lists and production details remain under wraps, the previous Sydney charter featured roaming vocalists, brass solos and DJ-led club classics, suggesting a similarly high-energy mix is planned for NZ1212.
Air New Zealand Bets on Experiences, Not Just Seats
For Air New Zealand, the SYNTHONY partnership is part of a broader strategy to sell atmosphere and memory alongside standard point-to-point travel. The carrier’s chief customer and digital officer, Jeremy O’Brien, has framed the charter as an example of how the airline wants journeys to be “just as memorable as the destination,” tapping into a demand for shareable, one-off experiences in an increasingly competitive travel market.
The airline, which has long leaned on playful safety videos and themed activations, is now extending that brand personality into live music collaborations that sit somewhere between charter flight and travelling festival. Turning an aircraft cabin into a legitimate event venue presents operational complexities, from sound levels and safety briefings to passenger movement, but the Sydney and now Christchurch charters suggest Air New Zealand sees value in experimenting at the edge of traditional airline product design.
Crucially, the SYNTHONY flights also appeal to a demographic that blends music tourism with domestic travel, encouraging fans to build entire weekends around a single signature event. By bundling flight, concert access and exclusive performances into a single purchase, the airline effectively positions itself as both carrier and curator of the overall trip.
A Once In A Lifetime Weekend for Christchurch
On the ground, NZ1212 feeds directly into what is being billed as a milestone for Christchurch’s cultural calendar. Once In A Lifetime will be the first major live music event staged at the new covered One New Zealand Stadium, a venue expected to reshape the touring map for large-scale acts in Aotearoa. For the city, welcoming SYNTHONY’s orchestral club sound and a full Six60 show as the debut concert is a statement that its live entertainment ambitions match those of Auckland and Wellington.
The concert will feature a full SYNTHONY set, pairing electronic dance classics with a live orchestra and guest vocalists, followed by a standalone Six60 performance drawing on both new material and chart-topping favourites. The night is set to close with a collaborative finale that reimagines some of Six60’s best-known songs with the full SYNTHONY treatment, promising a crossover moment tailored to a stadium-scale crowd.
With the charter flight, exclusive acoustic showcase, soundcheck access and stadium concert all woven into a single weekend, Christchurch is poised to become the focal point of New Zealand’s live music conversation in mid-May. For ticket holders on NZ1212, the story will begin well before they see the stadium roof, starting with basslines, beats and boarding calls high above the South Island.