Air NZ shift patterns ‘could spread virus’

Air New Zealand is risking spreading Covid-19 in New Zealand by rostering cabin crew who have flown internationally on to domestic flights just days later, a concerned flight crew member says.

An Air New Zealand spokeswoman said there would be ‘‘an incredibly limited number of A320 and 787 crew who may have been rostered on to fly both domestic and international routes throughout the alert levels’’.

The crew member believed it was ‘‘almost certain’’ at least one of the cabin crew on board a flight from Brisbane on June 7 that carried two British women who were later diagnosed with Covid-19 would have later crewed domestic flights without first being tested.

The staff member, who asked not be named, said they had seen a roster for an Air New Zealand crew member who had been assigned to an Australian flight, and then to a domestic flight just three days later.

They believed international and domestic crews should be separated and wanted to help, they said.

The crew member said cabin crew wore masks and gloves on flights, but they ‘‘were not armour’’ and they shared the same toilets as passengers.

Air New Zealand’s spokeswoman did not respond directly to whether any air crew on board the flight bringing the two British Covid19-positive women to New Zealand had then gone on to crew domestic flights, but said at some point they had been ‘‘stood down’’.

‘‘The affected crew members were stood down and required to test negative for Covid-19 before returning to work. These flight attendants have since tested negative,’’ she said.

Further comment has been sought from the airline on when the standdown occurred, and whether they were rostered on to domestic flights before that.

The Health Ministry has been contacted for comment on why it might not require Air NZ to maintain completely separately crew for international and domestic flights.

The crew member said Air NZ had the staff available to do that, and was not sure why that wasn’t happening.

Air NZ had implemented a policy about a week ago that required crew travelling to the United States to take a Covid-19 test before leaving 48 hours of self-isolation on their return to New Zealand, they said.

But they questioned why the same requirement was not made of staff crewing flights to destinations in Australia, given that passengers on flights from Australia could have transited from other ‘‘high risk’’ destinations such as the UK.

A hotel that accommodated crew during stopovers in Los Angeles, the Ayres Hotel in Hawthorne, did not provide any food or ‘‘even a vending machine’’, they said.

The crew member said staff at the hotel had resorted to bringing in food from New Zealand, against regulations, as they could not buy takeaways through the likes of Uber Eats if they did not have a US credit card.

But they feared some crew might be tempted to visit a fast-food restaurant across the road causing a Covid risk.

Air NZ’s spokeswoman said it was not correct that staff could not safely buy food at the hotel.

‘‘All hotels that are contracted to Air New Zealand for cabin crew layovers are required to have food available either within the hotel or have the ability for food to be delivered directly to crew hotel rooms,’’ it said.

Stuff called the hotel identified by the staff member on Friday afternoon. A receptionist said their restaurant was closed. ‘‘We don’t have anything in the hotel but there are restaurants across the street and some fast food’’, he advised.

Cabin crew wore masks and gloves, but they ‘‘were not armour’’ . Air New Zealand cabin crew member