Air New Zealand bids farewell to Boeing 767s

Air New Zealand has retired its fleet of Boeing 767 aircraft, more than 30 years after the aircraft were first introduced.

The airline’s last remaining 230-seat 767-300 aircraft took off from Sydney on Friday, for a trans-Tasman flight to Auckland. Upon arrival in New Zealand, the aircraft will be removed from service.

Since entering the national carrier’s fleet in 1985, the 767 has flown the majority of Air New Zealand’s long-haul routes. In recent years however, it has been progressively replaced by the larger and more fuel-efficient 787-9 Dreamliner. The airline has a total of 13 787s on order, with deliveries running until late 2018.

“The Boeing 767 aircraft has been a stalwart at Air New Zealand for more than 30 years now but moving to operate the modern 787-9 Dreamliners on our long-haul routes will allow us to be more efficient and have a consistent wide-body fleet which will deliver benefits to both the business and customers,” said Air New Zealand’s chief operations integrity & standards officer, Captain David Morgan.

“The use of the larger Dreamliners will result in a capacity increase of around 3% on the trans-Tasman and Pacific Island routes. Customers also get to experience our business premier and premium economy cabins on the 787-9 aircraft.”

The move also forms part of Air New Zealand’s bid to simplify its fleet, with a three-model fleet consisting of single-aisle Airbus A320s and twin-aisle 777s and 787s.