Air New Zealand has announced that it will temporarily suspend its flight from Auckland to Seoul-Incheon due to capacity problems. The reason for the limited flight availability is engine bottlenecks and delays in the interior fittings of the Boeing 787-9.
The first of the affected aircraft, which was scheduled to fly to Singapore for cabin refurbishment in October 2024, did not return after Christmas as planned. The delay has impacted the entire fleet renewal schedule, resulting in the aircraft's return being pushed back from mid-February to mid-2025.
In addition to the engine difficulties, Air New Zealand also cites maintenance capacity issues, delivery delays from manufacturers, supply chain bottlenecks and a labor shortage as other challenges. The airline plans to have its entire Boeing 787-9 fleet rebuilt by the end of 2026, but the delays in the aircraft's return from Singapore could alter the planned timeframes. In addition, several aircraft, including A321-200NX and B787-9, are currently out of service, further limiting capacity.
To maintain operations, Air New Zealand has made adjustments to its network, including swapping aircraft on certain routes and reducing frequencies. The airline has also leased three Boeing 777-300ERs from Cathay Pacific to offset the impact of the aircraft cancellations. Despite the bottlenecks, CEO Greg Foran remained optimistic, stressing the reliability of the B777 aircraft, which are currently in full operation.
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