Air New Zealand’s Boeing 777s were grounded for at least another year

Air New Zealand has grounded its fleet of Boeing 777s until at least September next year due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

In May, the airline grounded most of its seven 777-300 jets until the end of this year.

At the same time, the company also noted that it was unlikely to fly its eight 777-200s in the “foreseeable future” and began preparing to ship them to long-term storage overseas.

Four of Air New Zealand’s 777-300 aircraft will be stored at Victorville in the California desert, while the remaining three will remain in Auckland, where they can be returned to service if necessary.

The airline’s 777-200 aircraft will be shipped to long-term storage facilities in Roswell, New Mexico and Victorville beginning later this month.

The North American locations were chosen for their arid conditions and existing storage facilities that will ensure the aircraft are kept in condition that will allow them to return to service within six to eight weeks if necessary.

Air New Zealand’s Chief Operating Officer Carrie Hurihanganui says the recovery of the airline’s international network after Covid-19 now appears to be slower than initially thought.

“The recent resurgence of cases in New Zealand is a reminder that this is a very volatile situation. We do not anticipate the return of any 777s flying until September 2021 at the earliest, so we have made the decision to ground the fleet until at least this time next year, “he said.

The 777s are the largest aircraft in Air New Zealand’s fleet and have operated most of the airline’s long-haul routes for the past 15 years.

The airline’s international schedule will be operated by the more fuel-efficient Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft, along with A320 and A320 / 21neos for transtasman and Pacific islands routes.

Hundreds of planes are being placed in desert “graveyards” as airlines around the world battle it out. Air traffic is not expected to recover to 2019 levels for at least three years.