Passengers left fuming after Air New Zealand New York to Auckland flight delayed by more than 48 hours

Passengers on an Air New Zealand New York to Auckland flight were left fuming after their flight was delayed 24 hours due to weather, and then another 24 hours after they returned to the airport the next day to give crew sufficient rest time.

Retirement Commissioner Jane Wrightson was on the flight after a month away from home.

Take-off for the flight was scheduled for Thursday night (New York time), and the passengers were already on board the flight and taxiing before the first announcement came.

“We sat on the runway for about two hours at that point before taxiing to an unused runway before they shut the plane down,” Wrightson said.

She said the flight - currently Air New Zealand’s longest, taking a massive 16 hours - was shut down to conserve fuel.

She knew at this point something was up but was not told what.

Wrightson thought it might be weather-related, as there were thunderstorms in parts of New York like Manhattan, however, she didn’t see the same weather conditions in Queens where JFK airport is located.

They were then told to disembark and that the flight would be delayed 24 hours. The pilot said over the intercom the airline would help passengers sort accommodation.

Passengers were not told officially what had caused the delay.

“It all went to pieces on the ground,” Wrightson said.

“There was another two hours to get our bags as they clearly didn’t have enough baggage handlers.”

New York passengers were told to go home, and all others were told to find their own accommodation, which would be reimbursed up to $386.03 (US$250).

“Those who had to wait nearly three hours to get the last of their bags were [ushered] upstairs and taken to the Crowne Plaza,” Wrightson said.

Retirement Commissioner Jane Wrightson. Photo / Supplied

The first batch of passengers, which included Wrightson, were not told about this accommodation.

She said there was no one on the ground marshalling or informing passengers.

After paying more than $300 for her last-minute hotel, she arrived back at the airport the next afternoon to catch the delayed flight.

However, the check-in was closed.

Passengers staying at the Crowne Plaza had been told the flight was delayed again “so they didn’t come out”, Wrightson said.

This time passengers were told the plane was delayed due to insufficient staff rest time.

“At least this time we knew to jump on a bus to the Crowne Plaza and get another night,” Wrightson said.

The flight eventually took off at 1am on Sunday, a full 48 hours after it was meant to depart.

Wrightson said the delay, along with the other issues that have plagued the flight previously, showed the fragility of the airline industry at the moment.

“I think it’s telling us that the New York direct flight is pushing everything to the absolute maximum at the moment.

“If one thing goes wrong, then the whole house of cards collapses.”

In a statement to the Herald, an Air New Zealand spokesperson said challenging weather conditions in New York caused the runway to close, affecting a number of airlines.

The flight was one of a total of 13 weather-related cancellations at JFK.

There were also 72 departure delays on the same day.

“Unfortunately, due to these challenging weather conditions, Air New Zealand flight NZ1 from New York to Auckland was initially delayed two hours and then cancelled,” the statement read.

“Our teams worked tirelessly to reaccommodate customers and a recovery service, NZ6071, was due to operate 24 hours later.

“However, due to the roll-on effects from the weather conditions, including crewing requirements, the flight was further delayed.”

Air New Zealand’s care team kept customers up to date with the latest information and offered reimbursement for any costs incurred.

It has been a turbulent start for Air New Zealand’s marathon flight, plagued with issues since its inception in September.

The same month it started, Air New Zealand offered $2591 (US$1500) and paid hotel accommodation to 20 volunteer passengers in exchange for them to miss their flight due to it being overweight and facing strong headwinds.

The inaugural 787 flight suffered similar issues with strong headwinds and difficult weather, causing the airline to offload more than 60 passengers’ luggage and take on additional fuel in order to make the ultra-long route.

This occurred again at the end of October, with the flight from New York to Auckland having to make a pitstop in Nadi, Fiji, to refuel. The excuse was once again the strong headwinds.