Air New Zealand has been forced to put its flights to Hobart on hold due to the ongoing issues with the engines on some of its aircraft.
In a statement, the airline said services to Tasmania would be paused from April next year.
“The change comes as the airline adjusts its schedule to accommodate grounded aircraft undergoing mandatory Pratt & Whitney engine maintenance following the global engine issues it recently announced,” the airline said.
“There is no safety concern for aircraft and early engine maintenance is being conducted as a precautionary measure.”
Despite the cut, Air New Zealand’s general manager of short haul, Jeremy O’Brien said the route had been performing well as indicated by the increased services over the summer.
”Bookings remain strong over summer, however, looking forward, we had to plan for changes to the availability of our fleet due to required maintenance,” O’Brien said.
“While we’re not in a position to commit to a date to return to the direct service, we know demand for the services is higher over the warmer months and will be reviewing the availability of seats on our network throughout 2024 to update customers as soon as we can.
“We apologise to customers who have had their travel plans adjusted as a result of this change and thank them for their patience as our teams work to rebook or refund them.”
Customers with affected flights will be contacted with alternative options within the next week. If the new option was not suitable, they would be able to apply for a full refund.
Just months ago, Air New Zealand warned of “significant” changes to its 2024 schedule due to the global engine issue.
Its Pratt & Whitney engines are involved in an industry-wide recall leading to the shortage of parts and a lack of maintenance timeslots.
The parent company of Pratt & Whitney said it had discovered a rare condition in the powdered metal used in the manufacture of some of the engine parts, which could result in microscopic cracks.
