Passenger disruption woes grow for Air NZ
Impact of airline’s engine problems on flights affect thousands more Vegas Pin-Up pick a Kiwi
Taviation he number of Air New Zealand international passengers affected by Rolls-Royce engine problems on the airline’s Dreamliner fleet has grown to about 9000 this week.
The airline has cancelled or rescheduled scores of flights because of checks on engines and range restrictions for the aircraft.
When the scale of the problem emerged last week Air New Zealand said 6500 passengers would be affected over a week.
Yesterday it said the impact was confined to two key United States routes (Los Angeles and Houston) as well as Japan services operating to and from Haneda airport and a limited number of transtasman and Pacific Island flights. On its website, it says flights to Perth from Auckland and Christchurch have been hit by a wave of cancellations.
Air New Zealand said the number of customers likely to be affected by these changes was less than 3 per cent of all passengers travelling with it this week.
It has also explained why some of its Dreamliners are making new refuelling stops.
Chief operational integrity and standards officer David Morgan said depending on weather conditions, some flights may not be able to depart with all the fuel they need, prompting fuel stops. During the weekend, 787-9 flights made fuel stops at Sydney, Cairns, Darwin and Guam.
“Having the flexibility to make a short fuel stop means we are more likely to be able to take a full contingent of customers and cargo,” he said.
“The alternative would see us potentially having to disap- point significant numbers of customers by moving them to later flights. We are committed to doing everything possible to avoid this, particularly during this busy school holiday travel period.”
The fuel stops take about an hour to complete and passengers must remain on board. Where possible pilots will increase speed to make up time.
Passengers who have a connecting flight booked on the same ticket, and who are likely to miss it as a result of the fuel stop, will be re-booked on to the next available connection. Ewen McDonald, Rolls-Royce
A US Federal Aviation Administration airworthiness directive reduces the time Boeing 787-9 aircraft with a specific model of TRENT 1000 engine can be away from a diversion airport from more than five hours to 140 minutes.
The FAA has warned compressor blades could crack and could result in twin engine failure. Two Air New Zealand Dreamliners have been grounded while engines are repaired in Singapore.
Rolls-Royce senior VP of civil aerospace Ewen McDonald said the company was working towards a permanent fix.
“We are working on a new type of blade which will remove the need for repeat inspections.” A proud plus-size model from New Zealand has been crowned the winner of a popular pin-up beauty pageant in the United States.
Fran Robertson, who creates colourful costumes and dresses and is also a talented makeup artist, was crowned Miss Viva Las Vegas Pin-Up 2018 at the hugely popular Viva Las Vegas Rockabilly Weekend.
The event is said to be the world’s largest and most respected Rockabilly festival.
It recently celebrated its 20th anniversary and hosts a number of other shows to draw in the crowds such as a car show, burlesque shows, six music stages, a fashion show and the Pin-Up contest.
The Kiwi, whose business is Fran Robertson: Decorator of People and Things, took to social media to thank her many supporters and fans.
Sharing a photo of herself beaming on stage and with the winning sash draped over her white dress, she wrote: “So this happened. You guys, I am so f****** blown away and totally overwhelmed — and honestly, I am really, really proud of myself.
“I had such an amazing day at the Viva Las Vegas car show . . . winning the contest was just the icing on the cake.
“It’s absolutely the coolest thing in the universe that the judges picked a limpy fat girl to hold this title for the coming year and I hope I can do y’all proud!”
Robertson was among a number of finalists from around the world picked to take part in the Las Vegas competition.
She is not new to the scene, having been crowned the winner of Miss Pinup New Zealand in 2016.
In 2015 fellow Kiwi Ella Webster, known as Miss Victory Violet, won the Las Vegas competition, the first New Zealander to do so.
The competition website said the contest was very much about finding a woman who exemplifies what it means to be a “great pin-up in today’s modern world”.