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New Zealand Aviation Thread - August 2021

Air NZ is considering making Covid vaccination compulsory for its staff.
This is great to see and shows a change in attitude at the airline from a previous softly softly approach.
https://i.stuff.co.nz/business/industri ... 4000-staff

Zkpilot wrote:

Air NZ is considering making Covid vaccination compulsory for its staff.
This is great to see and shows a change in attitude at the airline from a previous softly softly approach.
https://i.stuff.co.nz/business/industri ... 4000-staff

Yes this is good and most staff will be on board and agree to do it. Also this puts Air NZ to be in line with Qantas and Virgin which have this policy for staff no jab no job.

Still no flights even at Level 3 at Invercargill airport. I expect it's the same for most regional cities around the country and no one knows when the situation will improve.

https://i.stuff.co.nz/travel/destinatio ... rt-level-3

NZ516 wrote:

Still no flights even at Level 3 at Invercargill airport. I expect it's the same for most regional cities around the country and no one knows when the situation will improve.

https://i.stuff.co.nz/travel/destinatio ... rt-level-3

Depends on the political pressure, there seems to be some media turn around in New Zealand now with more reporters not backing the Elimination Approach.
Hopefully we see some alert level changes in the next week, the South Island should really be level 1 by now.

Zkpilot wrote:

Air NZ is considering making Covid vaccination compulsory for its staff.
This is great to see and shows a change in attitude at the airline from a previous softly softly approach.
https://i.stuff.co.nz/business/industri ... 4000-staff

They aren't considering, It already has been stated as such. And any new staff will need to be vaccinated.

Greetings,

I haven't been on this thread for a few months now.
I was just curious, are there any updates on the Air NZ delivery schedule? And also the re-entry of 77Ws to service? I could've sworn I heard rumour that they'd aim to be back in service this month (the three at NZAA).

viewtopic.php?f=3&t=1463343&start=200

V60Polestar wrote:

Greetings,

I haven't been on this thread for a few months now.
I was just curious, are there any updates on the Air NZ delivery schedule? And also the re-entry of 77Ws to service? I could've sworn I heard rumour that they'd aim to be back in service this month (the three at NZAA).

Welcome back, checkout the previous thread last 2 pages or so, CAPEX on aircraft and revised delivery schedule was announced at the results last week and discussed.

77Ws, well they announced they will be retired by 2027, however when they reenter service now I don't know, are they aiming for before years end with the hope of borders opening up in January? Or will it be later or...? 1 leased 77W is not expected to RTS, not sure which one yet.

ZK-NBT wrote:

https://www.airliners.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=1463343&start=200

V60Polestar wrote:

Greetings,

I haven't been on this thread for a few months now.
I was just curious, are there any updates on the Air NZ delivery schedule? And also the re-entry of 77Ws to service? I could've sworn I heard rumour that they'd aim to be back in service this month (the three at NZAA).

Welcome back, checkout the previous thread last 2 pages or so, CAPEX on aircraft and revised delivery schedule was announced at the results last week and discussed.

77Ws, well they announced they will be retired by 2027, however when they reenter service now I don't know, are they aiming for before years end with the hope of borders opening up in January? Or will it be later or...? 1 leased 77W is not expected to RTS, not sure which one yet.

Cheers, appreciate it

zkncj wrote:

NZ516 wrote:

Still no flights even at Level 3 at Invercargill airport. I expect it's the same for most regional cities around the country and no one knows when the situation will improve.

https://i.stuff.co.nz/travel/destinatio ... rt-level-3

Depends on the political pressure, there seems to be some media turn around in New Zealand now with more reporters not backing the Elimination Approach.
Hopefully we see some alert level changes in the next week, the South Island should really be level 1 by now.

Sorry, but what reporters think about government's approach has absolutely zero relevance. Government is, correctly, listening to epidemiologists, and it's clear that the present approach still has overwhelming public support.

To suggest that the South Island "should" be at Level 1 - I'd venture to suggest that this should not be dictated by concern for the travel industry but that human health should be paramount, surely? There are still cases being imported every day, despite all the measures in place. I'd suggest airlines would be wise not to try to push things too fast, or they may find themselves facing even tougher restrictions down the line. Significantly, I don't see NZ itself pushing hard to relax restrictions - mostly just commentators and avgeeks.

aerorobnz wrote:

Zkpilot wrote:

Air NZ is considering making Covid vaccination compulsory for its staff.
This is great to see and shows a change in attitude at the airline from a previous softly softly approach.
https://i.stuff.co.nz/business/industri ... 4000-staff

They aren't considering, It already has been stated as such. And any new staff will need to be vaccinated.

New employees yes, but they are talking about existing employees.

Air NZ is dusting off their plans to launch the AKL to New York route. Likely to start in 2022 says Greg Foran airline CEO. The near 18 hour flight will use a premium heavy 787. So this must be the 275 seat version.

https://www.executivetraveller.com/news ... rk-flights

Zkpilot wrote:

aerorobnz wrote:

Zkpilot wrote:

Air NZ is considering making Covid vaccination compulsory for its staff.
This is great to see and shows a change in attitude at the airline from a previous softly softly approach.
https://i.stuff.co.nz/business/industri ... 4000-staff

They aren't considering, It already has been stated as such. And any new staff will need to be vaccinated.

New employees yes, but they are talking about existing employees.

They have already issued internal comms regarding this for all staff.

NZ516 wrote:

Still no flights even at Level 3 at Invercargill airport. I expect it's the same for most regional cities around the country and no one knows when the situation will improve.

https://i.stuff.co.nz/travel/destinatio ... rt-level-3

It's going to be interesting to see what happens with AKL over the coming weeks.

Some opinion out there suggests AKL would be in alert level 4 for several more weeks if not months ahead. If not 4 it'll be level 3. At the same time I expect pressure to come to release especially the south Island to level 2.

IVC will see flights at level 2, but with AKL being at level 3 or 4 for several more weeks or months it will seriously drag back overall network capacity.

AKL plays a massive part feeding passengers into various sectors across the network. But also - will businesses in WLG (for example) be willing to send employees off on business travel while AKL sits in level 4 and the risk of it spreading beyond AKL scarily real and high.

While we're no in the position NSW and VIC are in and we may be able to contain this one still, we do need to cross our fingers and jab as many people as fast as we can in the meantime.

On that, at the start of the week the PM and COVID minister both said they'll have something to say in the coming days around our supply of Pfizer. To my knowledge we haven't heard anything. Meanwhile ScoMo has done a deal with Singapore on top of his one with Poland. Not that I'm suggesting we would be better off with him at the helm (far from it) but fingers crossed we actually see progress and get extra doses onshore ASAP so we can maintain 80,000+ per day.

NZ516 wrote:

Air NZ is dusting off their plans to launch the AKL to New York route. Likely to start in 2022 says Greg Foran airline CEO. The near 18 hour flight will use a premium heavy 787. So this must be the 275 seat version.

https://www.executivetraveller.com/news ... rk-flights

Haha I think you've read way too much into that.

All you can take from this is they still intend to go to EWR. But that shouldn't really come as a surprise to anyone. A premium heavy market into N.A which has been the cash cow for the airline are key giveaways.

Also that the airline only ever delayed the commencement and never cancelled it or postponed it indefinitely. As for when and dusting off their plans which insinuates a more immanent plan, that's all political talk.

It's looking very unlikely that we'll see any significant border changes this coming summer, certainly not without any meaningful lead time anyway. We don't officially know how a safe zone will be determined and if the USA fits into this or how we'll validate vaccination status for foreign nationals or if that's even a requirement.

Then will the airline launch a new route going into low season or keep all options on the table for a FY23 (end 2022 calendar year) commencement. 12+ months away.

Yes there's plenty of work going on around how to make it work when, where to commence and how often etc etc. We could look at QF as an example of an airline who has outwardly spoken about their work, late last year they stated their intention to recommence international flying in July this year. That's now set to December. The same work is happening at NZ they're just sitting back on their thoughts for now.

Here's a couple of harder routes YVR, DPS, ICN, TPE. But I'm NOT suggesting these routes will be cancelled.

NZ516 wrote:

Air NZ is dusting off their plans to launch the AKL to New York route. Likely to start in 2022 says Greg Foran airline CEO. The near 18 hour flight will use a premium heavy 787. So this must be the 275 seat version.

https://www.executivetraveller.com/news ... rk-flights

Then this means ORD/IAH will restart soon.

AVENSAB727 wrote:

NZ516 wrote:

Air NZ is dusting off their plans to launch the AKL to New York route. Likely to start in 2022 says Greg Foran airline CEO. The near 18 hour flight will use a premium heavy 787. So this must be the 275 seat version.

https://www.executivetraveller.com/news ... rk-flights

Then this means ORD/IAH will restart soon.

While IAH/ORD will likely start before EWR you actually need to read the article, define ‘soon’, it doesn’t actually say EWR will likely start in 2022, considering NZ borders won’t reopen until atleast December, probably later. NZ are only flying pax to LAX atm.

It definitely won’t be using anything other than the 275 seat version of the 789 if it starts before 2023 when the new 789s arrive which may have less seats.

NZ6 wrote:

NZ516 wrote:

Air NZ is dusting off their plans to launch the AKL to New York route. Likely to start in 2022 says Greg Foran airline CEO. The near 18 hour flight will use a premium heavy 787. So this must be the 275 seat version.

https://www.executivetraveller.com/news ... rk-flights

Haha I think you've read way too much into that.

All you can take from this is they still intend to go to EWR. But that shouldn't really come as a surprise to anyone. A premium heavy market into N.A which has been the cash cow for the airline are key giveaways.

Also that the airline only ever delayed the commencement and never cancelled it or postponed it indefinitely. As for when and dusting off their plans which insinuates a more immanent plan, that's all political talk.

It's looking very unlikely that we'll see any significant border changes this coming summer, certainly not without any meaningful lead time anyway. We don't officially know how a safe zone will be determined and if the USA fits into this or how we'll validate vaccination status for foreign nationals or if that's even a requirement.

Then will the airline launch a new route going into low season or keep all options on the table for a FY23 (end 2022 calendar year) commencement. 12+ months away.

Yes there's plenty of work going on around how to make it work when, where to commence and how often etc etc. We could look at QF as an example of an airline who has outwardly spoken about their work, late last year they stated their intention to recommence international flying in July this year. That's now set to December. The same work is happening at NZ they're just sitting back on their thoughts for now.

Here's a couple of harder routes YVR, DPS, ICN, TPE. But I'm NOT suggesting these routes will be cancelled.

Interesting re those destinations you mention,

YVR is a good mix of inbound outbound, plenty of Australian connections, went to a 789 code 2 just prior to COVID which I would imagine for a 13/14hr flight would have significantly saved on fuel. Weather it will be a code 2 when it returns I have my doubts, with no 772s now the code 2 789s could probably go elsewhere as things pick up, maybe shared with AC?

DPS will depend on Indonesia COVID status, primarily outbound market.

ICN is interesting, currently OZ codeshare but they are merging with KE, this will form a mega carrier, mainly inbound market and KE usually dominate, NZ started Nov 2019, will they return? I think most connections for NZ were previously via NRT?

TPE I wouldn't consider a huge market, CI did offer 1 stop via BNE, I tend to think they may go non stop TPE-AKL a few times a week though 1 reason they hadn't already pre COVID is because aircraft utilization isn't efficient given they can't run a return in 24hrs which is fixed with going via BNE in the sense that BNE gets an overnight service in both directions without having the aircraft parked all day. In terms of NZ there is BR at TPE in Star, I could see them returning at some point NZ to TPE that is.

Not sure if i am right and given the push for more P2P, but I do think the hubs like HKG/SIN will be rebuilt before to many destinations are added, HKG itself isn't doing well politically either, interesting to see what happens.

ZK-NBT wrote:

Not sure if i am right and given the push for more P2P, but I do think the hubs like HKG/SIN will be rebuilt before to many destinations are added, HKG itself isn't doing well politically either, interesting to see what happens.

I noted today that Philippine Airlines has sought bankruptcy protection in the USA and is also planning to do so in the Philippines. The plan is to shrink the carrier somewhat, downsizing fleet and capacity. While it's obviously not a priority for NZ at the moment, I wonder whether this creates an opportunity for the carrier to dust off its plans for AKL-MNL in the next couple of years, given that route may not be a priority for a downsized PR.

DavidByrne wrote:

ZK-NBT wrote:

Not sure if i am right and given the push for more P2P, but I do think the hubs like HKG/SIN will be rebuilt before to many destinations are added, HKG itself isn't doing well politically either, interesting to see what happens.

I noted today that Philippine Airlines has sought bankruptcy protection in the USA and is also planning to do so in the Philippines. The plan is to shrink the carrier somewhat, downsizing fleet and capacity. While it's obviously not a priority for NZ at the moment, I wonder whether this creates an opportunity for the carrier to dust off its plans for AKL-MNL in the next couple of years, given that route may not be a priority for a downsized PR.

The MNL one had an unfortunate history when Air NZ tried to start it with 767s. Something to do with getting traffic rights but no landing slots from the Philippine Government so it could not start. Air NZ were ready to begin flying well before PR was even considering serving AKL but politics got in the way!

There seems to be a growing desire for Kiwis to travel abroad next year. More planning is needed to open up the border which will be vital for things to progress the right way.

https://i.stuff.co.nz/travel/destinatio ... ew-zealand

There's a photo of Air NZ A320-271N ZK-NHF (msn 10589) (F-WWTM) at TLS on 26 Aug 2021 and it's not in the 'Star Alliance' livery either.

https://flickr.com/photos/8509543@N03/51404501186/

PA515

PA515 wrote:

There's a photo of Air NZ A320-271N ZK-NHF (msn 10589) (F-WWTM) at TLS on 26 Aug 2021 and it's not in the 'Star Alliance' livery either.

https://flickr.com/photos/8509543@N03/51404501186/

PA515

Maybe the 'value' of the Star Alliance membership is currently pending review? would make sense not to paint an plane up as *A when every cost is currently being reviewed.
In an post covid world, is yet to be seen the value of global Alliances like *A.

Understand these Alliance Memberships cost a-lot per year to belong too, and currently not really providing much benefit to NZ.

NZ already has agreements in place with QF, SQ, CX, UA that go beyond an Alliance, which might bring more value to have a couple of key direct partnerships.

NZ516 wrote:

There seems to be a growing desire for Kiwis to travel abroad next year. More planning is needed to open up the border which will be vital for things to progress the right way.

https://i.stuff.co.nz/travel/destinatio ... ew-zealand

Can only dreaming of spending my January 2022 holiday in Singapore at Marina Bay Sands.... if we get get 80-90% of 12+ by Christmas jabbed, then there is an slight hope?

Indeed a slight hope for border reopening. I'm keen to go to Cairns in January and have leave booked but it might be a not be possible.

NZ516 wrote:

DavidByrne wrote:

ZK-NBT wrote:

Not sure if i am right and given the push for more P2P, but I do think the hubs like HKG/SIN will be rebuilt before to many destinations are added, HKG itself isn't doing well politically either, interesting to see what happens.

I noted today that Philippine Airlines has sought bankruptcy protection in the USA and is also planning to do so in the Philippines. The plan is to shrink the carrier somewhat, downsizing fleet and capacity. While it's obviously not a priority for NZ at the moment, I wonder whether this creates an opportunity for the carrier to dust off its plans for AKL-MNL in the next couple of years, given that route may not be a priority for a downsized PR.

The MNL one had an unfortunate history when Air NZ tried to start it with 767s. Something to do with getting traffic rights but no landing slots from the Philippine Government so it could not start. Air NZ were ready to begin flying well before PR was even considering serving AKL but politics got in the way!

PR started AKL via CNS on an A320 4x weekly in December 2015
NZ proposed to launch in 2016 3x weekly in December 2016 on a 763
PR went non stop MNL-AKL in December 2017 on a 343

It was said to be political or administrative that NZ cancelled the start of MNL, some places are hard to operate or do business, Argentina was said to be like this, who knows if PR knew NZ were looking at MNL and that played a part? Reality is PR started AKL before NZ announced MNL.

zkncj wrote:

PA515 wrote:

There's a photo of Air NZ A320-271N ZK-NHF (msn 10589) (F-WWTM) at TLS on 26 Aug 2021 and it's not in the 'Star Alliance' livery either.

https://flickr.com/photos/8509543@N03/51404501186/

PA515

Maybe the 'value' of the Star Alliance membership is currently pending review? would make sense not to paint an plane up as *A when every cost is currently being reviewed.
In an post covid world, is yet to be seen the value of global Alliances like *A.

Understand these Alliance Memberships cost a-lot per year to belong too, and currently not really providing much benefit to NZ.

NZ already has agreements in place with QF, SQ, CX, UA that go beyond an Alliance, which might bring more value to have a couple of key direct partnerships.

Perhaps it costs a fair bit to paint a few planes in the Star livery? I'd say NZ would probably stay where they are for the meantime. Whether Alliances are worth the spend in a post-covid world is another question entirely.

Alliance memberships in general has been stagnant for the past few years, with a few departures across all 3 Alliances in the past few years due to various mergers/acquisitions.

zkncj wrote:

PA515 wrote:

There's a photo of Air NZ A320-271N ZK-NHF (msn 10589) (F-WWTM) at TLS on 26 Aug 2021 and it's not in the 'Star Alliance' livery either.

https://flickr.com/photos/8509543@N03/51404501186/

PA515

Maybe the 'value' of the Star Alliance membership is currently pending review? would make sense not to paint an plane up as *A when every cost is currently being reviewed.
In an post covid world, is yet to be seen the value of global Alliances like *A.

Understand these Alliance Memberships cost a-lot per year to belong too, and currently not really providing much benefit to NZ.

NZ already has agreements in place with QF, SQ, CX, UA that go beyond an Alliance, which might bring more value to have a couple of key direct partnerships.

Star Alliance changed their fee structure now based on revenue rather than a flat fee so I imagine at the moment the majority of the alliance fees are shouldered by the likes of UA, LH, CA, etc. Leaving the alliance costs nothing but re-entry would be a huge cost. The pandemic is not permanent so I don't know why NZ would even be considering that.

ZK-NBT wrote:

NZ516 wrote:

DavidByrne wrote:

I noted today that Philippine Airlines has sought bankruptcy protection in the USA and is also planning to do so in the Philippines. The plan is to shrink the carrier somewhat, downsizing fleet and capacity. While it's obviously not a priority for NZ at the moment, I wonder whether this creates an opportunity for the carrier to dust off its plans for AKL-MNL in the next couple of years, given that route may not be a priority for a downsized PR.

The MNL one had an unfortunate history when Air NZ tried to start it with 767s. Something to do with getting traffic rights but no landing slots from the Philippine Government so it could not start. Air NZ were ready to begin flying well before PR was even considering serving AKL but politics got in the way!

PR started AKL via CNS on an A320 4x weekly in December 2015
NZ proposed to launch in 2016 3x weekly in December 2016 on a 763
PR went non stop MNL-AKL in December 2017 on a 343

It was said to be political or administrative that NZ cancelled the start of MNL, some places are hard to operate or do business, Argentina was said to be like this, who knows if PR knew NZ were looking at MNL and that played a part? Reality is PR started AKL before NZ announced MNL.

When NZ announced MNL, the planning dept. was getting a little bit carried away with new destinations. NZ management admitted to me a few years later this and
that the reality was this route was not going to work. NZ also assumed they could get slots at the times they wanted - MNL is extremely slot restricted with just 2 cross runways, one for domestic services only - refer to the fight between UA and PR over more slots at MNL for UA and PR trying to get rights to SEA precovid.
The problem for NZ to MNL is that for a variety of reasons it is an extremely low yield route and until the Philippines becomes more established destination as a leisure destination, there will not be room for 2 carriers.

Kiwings wrote:

ZK-NBT wrote:

NZ516 wrote:

The MNL one had an unfortunate history when Air NZ tried to start it with 767s. Something to do with getting traffic rights but no landing slots from the Philippine Government so it could not start. Air NZ were ready to begin flying well before PR was even considering serving AKL but politics got in the way!

PR started AKL via CNS on an A320 4x weekly in December 2015
NZ proposed to launch in 2016 3x weekly in December 2016 on a 763
PR went non stop MNL-AKL in December 2017 on a 343

It was said to be political or administrative that NZ cancelled the start of MNL, some places are hard to operate or do business, Argentina was said to be like this, who knows if PR knew NZ were looking at MNL and that played a part? Reality is PR started AKL before NZ announced MNL.

When NZ announced MNL, the planning dept. was getting a little bit carried away with new destinations. NZ management admitted to me a few years later this and
that the reality was this route was not going to work. NZ also assumed they could get slots at the times they wanted - MNL is extremely slot restricted with just 2 cross runways, one for domestic services only - refer to the fight between UA and PR over more slots at MNL for UA and PR trying to get rights to SEA precovid.
The problem for NZ to MNL is that for a variety of reasons it is an extremely low yield route and until the Philippines becomes more established destination as a leisure destination, there will not be room for 2 carriers.

Yea there were obviously some issues somewhere, NZ would have wanted a 1700-1800 arrival into MNL I would imagine 10-11am ex AKL. TBH while it might be "extremely" low yeild remember these flights were to be operated by well and truly paid off 763s, though they were retired in March 2017 so may have been an issue. SGN operated for what 3 winters? From memory the first season was a 3x weekly 763 in 2016 then 2 years it was a 2 weekly 789 IIRC. They were looking for places to fly seasonally outbound in NZ winter to use aircraft that might otherwise be idle. HNL and DPS were doing really well.

Which was the other problem for MNL - very heavy VFR so the peak season was DEC/JAN just when NZ did not want to have to commit resources when they had better more profitable markets to serve.

Interesting news that 385 Australians flew Air NZ via AKL and went to holiday in the Cook is when the Tasman bubble was open. These returning Australians risk fines of $6550 that will hurt them in the wallet!

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/travel/385-a ... HFN4JPN6Y/

NZ516 wrote:

Interesting news that 385 Australians flew Air NZ via AKL and went to holiday in the Cook is when the Tasman bubble was open. These returning Australians risk fines of $6550 that will hurt them in the wallet!

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/travel/385-a ... HFN4JPN6Y/

Surely, if based on customs data, they could be Australians resident in NZ?

DavidByrne wrote:

NZ516 wrote:

Interesting news that 385 Australians flew Air NZ via AKL and went to holiday in the Cook is when the Tasman bubble was open. These returning Australians risk fines of $6550 that will hurt them in the wallet!

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/travel/385-a ... HFN4JPN6Y/

Surely, if based on customs data, they could be Australians resident in NZ?

I guess that is possible so they will avoid the fine.

Mentioned at the start of the COVID briefing today that negotiations to secure further Pfizer vaccine supplies from third parties are in advanced stages and that it is expected that there will be something to announce in the coming days.

PA515 wrote:

There's a photo of Air NZ A320-271N ZK-NHF (msn 10589) (F-WWTM) at TLS on 26 Aug 2021 and it's not in the 'Star Alliance' livery either.

https://flickr.com/photos/8509543@N03/51404501186/

PA515

Why can't they paint the back bit of the SAT dome so that it sticks out a bit less? It has become a big bugbear of mine in recent times.

DavidByrne wrote:

NZ516 wrote:

Interesting news that 385 Australians flew Air NZ via AKL and went to holiday in the Cook is when the Tasman bubble was open. These returning Australians risk fines of $6550 that will hurt them in the wallet!

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/travel/385-a ... HFN4JPN6Y/

Surely, if based on customs data, they could be Australians resident in NZ?

And how long do they have to stay in New Zealand to be called an resident? e.g. you had to wait in New Zealand for 14 days before you could travel onto the Cook Islands.

zkncj wrote:

And how long do they have to stay in New Zealand to be called an resident? e.g. you had to wait in New Zealand for 14 days before you could travel onto the Cook Islands.

I've no idea, sorry - there's nothing in an Australian resident's passport that indicates NZ residency. But I strongly suspect that the vast majority of Aussies visiting the Cooks recently would have been resident here. It would have been a huge and potentially very expensive risk to take otherwise - why would you put yourself through that level of anxiety and stress for a holiday?

zkojq wrote:

Mentioned at the start of the COVID briefing today that negotiations to secure further Pfizer vaccine supplies from third parties are in advanced stages and that it is expected that there will be something to announce in the coming days.

PA515 wrote:

There's a photo of Air NZ A320-271N ZK-NHF (msn 10589) (F-WWTM) at TLS on 26 Aug 2021 and it's not in the 'Star Alliance' livery either.

https://flickr.com/photos/8509543@N03/51404501186/

PA515

Why can't they paint the back bit of the SAT dome so that it sticks out a bit less? It has become a big bugbear of mine in recent times.

Other A320/A321NEOs don't have them painted either. The SAT domes look white but are a very light grey and attached before painting. Maybe painting them would affect the SAT function.

PA515

Wellington Airport passenger numbers in 2021 are up on 2020 but still down on 2019 levels. International has taken the biggest hit no surprises there while domestic is nearly back to normal. Singapore airlines has also permanently closed WLG services and won't return. Disappointing for the locals but not unexpected really considering the global situation

https://simpleflying.com/wellington-air ... july-2021/

https://i.stuff.co.nz/business/industri ... ble-future

Northland airports are still quiet under Alert Level 2 despite the rest of the country outside of Auckland seeing increased services.
They had this issue last time of feeling cut off from the rest of the country when AKL was in Level 4.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/travel/covid ... LBXAPCZOU/

With new tighter level 2 rule being introduced, around capacity and 2 meter spacing.

How will AKL Domestic be able to meet these requirements when Auckland moves to level 2?

Domestic Jet airside is so tight it just takes an couple of a320/321 leaving within an hour to have that space packed out.

zkncj wrote:

With new tighter level 2 rule being introduced, around capacity and 2 meter spacing.

How will AKL Domestic be able to meet these requirements when Auckland moves to level 2?

Domestic Jet airside is so tight it just takes an couple of a320/321 leaving within an hour to have that space packed out.

Not all places are limited by this rule. Hospitals, Workplaces, Supermarkets, Airports can all be indoor places where you can have more than 50 people. Face coverings are mandatory in public facing locations.

NZ516 wrote:

Northland airports are still quiet under Alert Level 2 despite the rest of the country outside of Auckland seeing increased services.
They had this issue last time of feeling cut off from the rest of the country when AKL was in Level 4.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/travel/covid ... LBXAPCZOU/

I wonder if Air NZ would consider temporary reinstatement of WRE-WLG to better connect Northland with the rest of the country?

It's interesting to look at my ads-b receiver stats and see how you can spot the change when the Alert Level changes come into force. https://twitter.com/ZaphodHarkonnen/sta ... 8292027392

a7ala wrote:

NZ516 wrote:

Northland airports are still quiet under Alert Level 2 despite the rest of the country outside of Auckland seeing increased services.
They had this issue last time of feeling cut off from the rest of the country when AKL was in Level 4.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/travel/covid ... LBXAPCZOU/

I wonder if Air NZ would consider temporary reinstatement of WRE-WLG to better connect Northland with the rest of the country?

Well it isn't quite WRE. https://www.stuff.co.nz/travel/news/126 ... ri-service

Air NZ to do Wellington to Kerikeri service but just a temporary schedule. It might do well with domestic connections to become a permanent offering.

https://i.stuff.co.nz/travel/news/12633 ... app-iPhone

NZ516 wrote:

Air NZ to do Wellington to Kerikeri service but just a temporary schedule. It might do well with domestic connections to become a permanent offering.

https://i.stuff.co.nz/travel/news/12633 ... app-iPhone

Is this because of runway limitations at Whangarei limiting the range of a Q300 to less then required for a flight to Wellington? or is it a non availability of fuel at Whangarei making a Wellington to Whangarei return just on the fuel uplifted from Wellington a non starter?

Toenga wrote:

NZ516 wrote:

Air NZ to do Wellington to Kerikeri service but just a temporary schedule. It might do well with domestic connections to become a permanent offering.

https://i.stuff.co.nz/travel/news/12633 ... app-iPhone

Is this because of runway limitations at Whangarei limiting the range of a Q300 to less then required for a flight to Wellington? or is it a non availability of fuel at Whangarei making a Wellington to Whangarei return just on the fuel uplifted from Wellington a non starter?

If the runway in WRE was the limiting factor, maybe they could re-tweak an HLZ in the short-term e.g. WRE-HLZ-WLG (if there was demand for it)

Toenga wrote:

NZ516 wrote:

Air NZ to do Wellington to Kerikeri service but just a temporary schedule. It might do well with domestic connections to become a permanent offering.

https://i.stuff.co.nz/travel/news/12633 ... app-iPhone

Is this because of runway limitations at Whangarei limiting the range of a Q300 to less then required for a flight to Wellington? or is it a non availability of fuel at Whangarei making a Wellington to Whangarei return just on the fuel uplifted from Wellington a non starter?

I would expect so. Can't uplift fuel in WRE and tankering return fuel WLG is load restrictive.

SelandiaBaru wrote:

I would expect so. Can't uplift fuel in WRE and tankering return fuel WLG is load restrictive.

What’s the issue uplifting fuel at WRE? Ironic given it’s the home to Marsden Point.