Air New Zealand has been forced to temporarily pause its widebody services to and from Samoa due to ground service equipment being deemed “unfit for service”.
The airline says it was made aware on Friday night the equipment required to load and unload passenger bags and cargo on to the widebody aircraft (787 or 777) was not up to standard.
Air New Zealand Head of Pacific Islands, Brent Roxburgh said over the last 12 months the airline has worked extensively with our ground handler partner in Samoa to ensure it’s up to their safety standards.
“As the safety of our people is our top priority, the airline made the call to pause widebody services until the equipment has been fixed,” said Roxburgh.
As a result, Air NZ had to cancel two widebody services in and out of Apia on Saturday 9 September and Monday 11 September, he said.
“Our team have worked hard behind the scenes to re-accommodate impacted customers onto narrowbody services (A321neo aircraft) where possible. We have also added an Auckland – Apia – Auckland recovery flight to depart today, Monday 11 September, to get as many customers as possible to their final destination. At this stage, widebody flights will resume from Tuesday 12 September.”
However, capacity is limited and not all passengers are able to be rebooked onto this flight.
“Due to high demand passengers may be required to fly a few days either side of their original travel, however, we are doing everything we can to limit this impact. Our team on the ground in Auckland and Apia are assisting customers with accommodation if they require it.
“We know this will be frustrating for customers and we apologise for any inconvenience caused. We want to thank them for their patience as we work through this disruption.
“We know how important our services are in to and out of the region so continue to work closely with our aviation stakeholders in Samoa to ensure surety of Air New Zealand services to the region.”