Air New Zealand flight NZ125 bound for Melbourne diverts back to Auckland after technical issue

An Air New Zealand flight bound for Melbourne has turned back to Auckland Airport after encountering a technical issue shortly after its departure.

Flight NZ125, an Airbus A320, departed Auckland International Airport just before 4pm, but turned back soon after.

“Shortly after departure, the flight crew of flight NZ125 travelling from Auckland to Melbourne encountered a minor technical issue with the aircraft,” said Air New Zealand chief operational integrity and safety officer, Captain David Morgan.

“Given its location, the decision has been made for the aircraft to return to Auckland, which is better equipped to assess the aircraft and get it back into service more quickly.”

Flight NZ125 diverted back to Auckland International Airport a short time after departing. Photo / Flightradar24

It was estimated the aircraft would return to Auckland sometime after 6pm.

“In order to meet weight requirements for landing, the aircraft is having to circle, before landing back in Auckland. There is no safety risk to passengers on board,” Morgan said.

An Air NZ spokesperson confirmed the aircraft was not jettisoning fuel, but circling to burn fuel.

Morgan said as a consequence of the issue, Air NZ have cancelled flight NZ216, which was scheduled to depart Melbourne for Christchurch this evening.

“We appreciate the patience and understanding of our customers while our customer care team works through rebooking passengers onto the next available services.”