WELLINGTON: New Zealand’s national airline said on Thursday (March 12) that it would cancel 1,100 flights over the next two months, pointing to the impact of the conflict in the Middle East.
Air New Zealand chief executive Nikhil Ravishankar said around 5 per cent of its flights will be cancelled, affecting 44,000 passengers.
The cancelled flights are mostly on domestic routes within New Zealand but will also include some international flights, he added.
Flights between New Zealand and the US would not be impacted due to increased demand for alternative routes to Europe, Ravishankar said.
“With the unprecedented volatility in jet fuel prices due to the conflict in the Middle East, airlines around the world are adjusting fares and their schedules to help manage the impact of these significantly increased costs,” he said.
He added that jet fuel typically costs about US$85 (S$108) a barrel, but prices were now double that.
Cancellations would help keep flying as affordable as possible and ensure the company was efficient with fuel, Ravishankar said.
On March 10, Air New Zealand raised ticket prices on all routes.
Oil prices this week surged well above US$100 a barrel after Iranian attacks on shipping effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz in response to the US-Israeli strikes that killed the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. - AFP
