Air New Zealand working ‘constructively’ with Boeing, chair says

Air New Zealand Ltd. will “work constructively” with Boeing Co. to secure its 787 Dreamliners and has faith the US planemaker can deliver on its order even as it faces increased scrutiny into its manufacturing practices.

The board of New Zealand’s national carrier is “very interested in what is happening” at Boeing, Chairwoman Therese Walsh told Bloomberg News in an interview in Singapore, and plans to visit the planemaker in the coming 12 months.

“We have to be really interested to make sure that we have the aircraft that we need and they operate in the way we wish them to,” said Walsh, who was in Singapore as part of a delegation of business leaders accompanying New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon.

Back home in New Zealand, the airline is facing a number of headwinds including intense competition on international routes and rising non-fuel costs. It’s also grappling with Pratt & Whitney engine maintenance issues on its Airbus SE A321neo fleet, which will see as many as five of its newest and most efficient aircraft out of service at any one time across the next 18 months, at least.

New Boeing 787 Dreamliners, which will be powered by GE Aerospace engines and contain new business class seats and bunk beds in coach, won’t arrive until at least mid-2025 — much later than initially planned.

Air New Zealand on Monday announced it will purchase 7,200 tons of sustainable aviation fuel from producer Neste Oyj’s Singapore refinery.

Meanwhile, a strategic alliance with Singapore Airlines Ltd., which allows the New Zealand carrier to connect passengers to more destinations globally, in February won approval from authorities to run until 2029.