Travelers are warned to expect flights to be disrupted during school holidays due to inclement weather and an unusually high number of sick employees.
Air New Zealand is gearing up for its busiest July school holiday period since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, with more than 672,000 customers booked to travel domestically and abroad.
The start of the holiday coincides with stormy conditions will affect most of the country, with heavy snowfall, downpours and severe storms forecast.
Air New Zealand chief executive Greg Foran said the weather and worker illness are putting pressure on the network.
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“We are delighted to be bringing so many customers to their holiday destinations, but like other New Zealand businesses we are dealing with a more than usual employee illness,” he said. “This combined with the tumultuous weather is likely to cause some disruptions to the network in the coming days.
“Our teams are working hard to keep any disruption to a minimum, but as flights are incredibly full for the next few weeks, unfortunately there is limited spare capacity to move customers to alternative flights.”
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Air New Zealand, Airbus A320, landing at Auckland Airport (IStock image reuploaded)
Airports are also expected to be busy, so the airline is encouraging customers to prepare their travel documents before arriving at the airport and allow enough time to go through check-in, security and to the gate.
Around 120,000 travelers depart on international flights from Auckland during the holiday season, in what is expected to be the airport’s busiest period since 2019.
This Friday – the start of the holiday – will be the busiest day for international departures, followed by the two subsequent Fridays of the holiday period
Like many airlines, Air New Zealand struggles to keep up with call volume, so customers are encouraged to use the Travel Alerts page on its website for information on call center wait times before calling.
More than 172,000 customers have been booked to travel abroad with the flag carrier during these school holidays, with Australia proving to be a particularly popular destination.