There have been large queues at Auckland Airport after two Air NZ flights were cancelled due to the Airbus A320 fault.
Kiwi travellers are facing major flight disruption due to a global software issue affecting Airbus A320 planes.
An NZ Herald journalist who was scheduled to fly with Jetstar this morning described scenes of “chaos” at Auckland Airport.
They said there was a “stampede” when travellers were told their flight was cancelled and that they’d need to rebook downstairs.
“We were waiting for flights that had already been delayed because of this global issue. There were no seats available, and people were scattered across the floor.
“We were hopeful that maybe we’d start boarding soon and then this packed waiting room with two flights, one to Queenstown and one to Christchurch, we just heard over the intercom that both the flights had been cancelled and that everyone had to go downstairs and rebook,” said the traveller.
They’d managed to get on another flight later this afternoon – but others hadn’t.
“There’s hundreds of people waiting now. A lot of people seem quite frustrated. I overheard some people that had been on the Queenstown flight and they’d been put on the flight and then had to get off. Now they’re having to rebook completely.”
They said communication between the airline and passengers over the cause of the cancellations had been poor.
Both Air New Zealand and Jetstar, the country’s two main domestic airlines, have grounded planes while responding to the situation.
Air New Zealand chief safety and risk officer Nathan McGraw said the global software issue was impacting their Airbus A320neo aircraft.
“As a precaution, all A320neo aircraft in our fleet will receive a software update before operating their next passenger service. This will lead to disruption across a number of our A320neo flights today and we’re expecting a number of cancellations to services across that fleet.
“We will contact customers directly if their flight is affected”, McGraw said.
He said customers can also check the latest updates on their flight through the Air NZ app or website.
“We will provide an update when we have more information on the impact to our services today.”
Jetstar flights are also facing disruption.
“Due to an issue affecting Airbus A320 operators globally, some of Jetstar’s Airbus-operated flights are unable to depart at this stage,” the airline said in a statement.
“We’re working through the impacts on our fleet and to our customers. We’ll have more information shortly.
“We apologise to customers for the inconvenience caused.”
Jetstar recently added a ninth A320 to its fleet.
Some transtasman flights are also impacted. One woman waiting to fly to Wellington from Brisbane told the Herald the delays were causing discomfort.
“Air NZ and the airport are keeping us updated but no signs of moving yet. Quite muggy here too. Feel sorry for little ones & older people.”
Airbus on Friday warned of potential travel disruption as it upgrades some 6000 operational A320 aircraft, after an incident on a JetBlue flight last month.
The European plane-maker on Friday instructed its clients to take “immediate precautionary action” after evaluating the incident.
“Intense solar radiation may corrupt data critical to the functioning of flight controls,” Airbus stated, adding that “a significant number of A320 Family aircraft currently in-service” may be affected.
Replacing the software will take “a few hours” on most planes but for some 1000 aircraft, the process “will take weeks”, a source close to the issue told AFP.
The faulty software, the Elevator and Aileron Computer (ELAC), is made by aerospace and defence giant Thales.
“Airbus acknowledges these recommendations will lead to operational disruptions to passengers and customers,” it said, apologising for the inconvenience.
On October 30, a JetBlue-operated A320 aircraft encountered an in-flight control issue due to a computer malfunction.
The plane suddenly nosedived as it travelled between Cancun in Mexico and Newark in the United States, and the pilots had to land the plane in Tampa, Florida.
US media quoted local firefighters saying that some passengers were injured.
Produced since 1988, the A320 is the best-selling airplane globally, with Airbus selling 12,257 of the aircraft by the end of September compared with the sale of 12,254 Boeing 737s.
– Additional reporting Agence France-Presse