Air NZ has hit out at an aviation safety specialist's interpretation of what went on before an Airbus A320 crashed into the Mediterranean off France in 2008.

Air New Zealand crew encouraged the pilots of an Airbus 320 to carry out tests minutes before the plane crashed off the coast of France, a specialist said.

Experts for French prosecutors probing the crash of an Air NZ jet in 2008 agree with air safety investigations which blame human error.

All seven people aboard an Airbus A320 test flight died when it crashed in 2008. Air NZ said it could not confirm a report that an announcement would be made tonight regarding the crash.

Remuneration for top executives continues to grow faster than for ordinary workers.

Cheeky air travellers have found a way to bend the rules by using self-service kiosks in domestic terminals.

Air NZ says reports one of its planes was on a collision course with another aircraft are nothing more than "sensationalist" media coverage.

An investigation has begun into why a Virgin Australia Boeing 777 and an Air New Zealand 767 were on a collision course in Fiji air space last month.

Keeping cellphones off during flights will soon be a thing of the past with Air New Zealand set to introduce new aircraft with mobile and internet services later this year.

Air New Zealand is increasing its international capacity by 4.9 per cent and domestic capacity by 3.8 per cent as it starts to see a recovery in air travel.

A jobless jetsetter is snapping up dozens of Air New Zealand's $1 Grabaseat fares - so he can earn enough Status points to gain gold flyer perks.

Air New Zealand climbed from eighth-best in the world last year's to fifth in this year's annual world airline awards.

Over 17.9 million passengers have cast their vote for the world's top airlines in a Skytrax survey.

Plastic cutlery on some Air New Zealand flights is re-used up to 10 times before being thrown away.

Air New Zealand has begun hiring new cabin crew - but is not offering jobs to any of the flight attendants made redundant in last year's downturn.