Air NZ chief takes the controls

Air New Zealand CEO Ralph Norris in the new Boeing 777 flight simulator. Picture / Richard Robinson

Air New Zealand chief executive Ralph Norris took the chance to take the controls yesterday at the official unveiling of the airline's newly-acquired $20 million Boeing 777 flight simulator.

The new simulator - make that pre-loved by United Airlines - will train pilots to fly the new Boeing 777-200ER (extended range) aircraft which will replace its 767 planes. The first of the 777s arrives here in late August.

The "zero flight time simulator" means the 160 pilots undergoing training to fly the eight new planes can do so without having to step into the actual aircraft until their first day in the cockpit. Air NZ's new simulator building, near its engineering base alongside Auckland International Airport, has been constructed in a "modular" fashion, allowing more simulator bays to be added when needed.