The Air New Zealand Limited (ASX: AIZ) share price will be one to watch this morning.
This follows the airline operator's announcement in regards to its international cargo flights.
At yesterday's market close, Air New Zealand shares finished the day at $1.565.
What did Air New Zealand announce?
The Air New Zealand share price could receive a boost today after the company revealed it would be receiving continued government assistance.
In this morning's release, Air New Zealand advised it has been awarded a further five months of cargo flights under the New Zealand government's Maintaining International Air Connectivity (MIAC) scheme.
Introduced in March 2021, the MIAC scheme gives financial assistance to selected airline operators. The funds are used to support the cost of flying, and help keep the country connected to global trade partners.
This is particularly crucial at a time where international borders continue to remain shut due to COVID-19.
The MIAC scheme will run until the end of October 2021.
Air New Zealand has been awarded an average of 30 flights per week across 13 international cities and key Pacific ports.
These include Los Angeles, Hong Kong, Shanghai and other major hub destinations. However, it excludes the trans-Tasman and Rarotonga travel bubbles currently in service.
The total financial support for Air New Zealand over this additional five-month period is estimated to be between $120 million and $145 million.
This brings overall government financial assistance for FY21 to between $320 million and $340 million in cargo revenue.
While the result is an improvement from FY20 levels, the airline still expects to make a significant loss for cargo revenue in FY21.
Air New Zealand share price summary
Over the past 12 months, Air New Zealand shares have jumped more than 20%, however year-to-date performance has fallen 6%.
The company's shares reached a 52-week high of $1.88 last June before dropping lower in the months ahead.
On valuation grounds, Air New Zealand has a market capitalisation of roughly $1.7 billion, with approximately 1.2 billion shares outstanding.
