Air New Zealand, tapping the burgeoning Chinese tourist market, and strong interest by New Zealanders in the Olympic Games in Beijing next year, will start flying to Beijing from July 18 next year, ahead of the Olympic Games.

    Air New Zealand chief executive Rob Fyfe announced the new service on Thursday, the Dominion Post daily reported.

    The service, subject to all necessary Chinese regulatory and operating approvals, would operate out of New Zealand's largest city of Auckland on Wednesday and Friday and out of Beijing on Thursday and Saturday using the airline's new Boeing 777-200ER aircraft.

    Fyfe said the new service would build on the success of the airline's Auckland-Shanghai service, launched in November 2006.

    He added that Chinese visitor numbers to New Zealand were booming, with growth of about 14 percent a year.

    The new service was part of the airline's push to expand its presence in China, and was expected to generate a high level of interest, he said.

    To provide sufficient capacity for the Beijing flights, the airline will cut its Auckland Shanghai service to three times a week until November 2008.

    Fyfe said from November next year the airline planned to operate five services a week to Shanghai, plus the two Beijing flights.

    Fyfe expected strong demand from New Zealanders as it coincided with the Beijing Olympics which run from Aug. 8-24.