Flight cancellations: Mayor says Air NZ has taken 'fair' approach

Flight disruptions will affect Marlborough Airport from next week due to volatile jet fuel prices, prompting the mayor to urge patience.

By Kira Carrington of Local Democracy Reporting

Air New Zealand will reduce the number of flights, expected to affect about 44,000 people nationally, chief executive Nikhil Ravishankar said on Thursday.

An Air NZ spokesperson said the cancellations were “mainly in lower-demand or off-peak times” and affected passengers would be rebooked on flights the same day as their original booking.

Marlborough mayor Nadine Taylor said flights connecting Marlborough with Wellington and Auckland would be affected from next week until early May.

“I believe Air New Zealand has taken a fair and reasonable approach across the national network to keep the regions connected and air travel accessible. This consolidation takes into account the affordability of airline tickets as well,” she said.

“Air New Zealand says it intends to reduce routes to Wellington three times per week, for a total of 28 rotations (inbound and outbound flights), as well as nine rotations in total between Marlborough and Auckland,” Taylor said.

But Marlborough’s routes would remain largely intact as flights were generally at more than 80% capacity, she said.

Taylor acknowledged that jet fuel market volatility had forced airlines across the world to make tough choices, saying she hoped the reductions would be “swift and temporary”.

The price of jet fuel had more than doubled in the past week with prices in Asia and Oceania up 77%, according to the International Air Transport Association.

Consumer New Zealand chief executive Jon Duffy said affected passengers were entitled to ask for a refund, under the Civil Aviation Act, if they did not want to accept a replacement flight.

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“The decision to amend the flight schedules is driven by rising fuel costs. We think this is an operational decision, which means impacted passengers have rights if the rescheduled flight doesn’t suit them.”

LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.