Fast-track approval has been granted to a significant Wellington infrastructure project which will safeguard the International Airport’s long-term operations, protect critical assets, create two kororā (little penguin) colonies, and generate hundreds of jobs.

Associate Transport Minister James Meager says the Wellington International Airport Southern Seawall Renewal project, valued at more than $100 million, will renew and maintain the airport’s ageing southern seawall and bring significant regional benefits.

“This is a major long-term resilience project for the capital, with enabling works commencing this year to upgrade 400 metres of the airport’s southern seawall,” Mr Meager says.

“Renewing and strengthening sections of the existing southern seawall will improve its resilience to coastal processes and extreme weather events, while supporting the airport’s continued safe operation.

“Two new penguin colonies will also be created to support habitation and breeding. It will include purpose-built nestboxes, wind shelter and vegetation to provide suitable habitat. They will also be fenced to protect from dog attacks and disturbance by people. 

“Importantly, this project will deliver major economic benefits for local communities, through the creation of 114 jobs annually throughout the construction period. The project has a strong estimated cost-benefit ratio of 2.6, with gross benefits of up to $690 million forecast.”

Wellington International Airport Ltd lodged its application in October 2025, with approval taking around six months following the commencement of the independent expert panel.

“This is yet another common-sense Fast-track decision. Wellington Airport facilitates annual expenditure of $3.9 billion, supports more than 14,500 full-time equivalent jobs, and contributes around $2 billion in GDP to the region’s economy annually. This project will help protect and future-proof this important asset,” Mr Meager says.

MIL OSI

The Aviation Industry Association says Air New Zealand is far from the only airline eyeing flight cuts, due to soaring fuel costs.

The airline says it has cut 5 percent of its flights and will start to consolidate more routes after the school holidays.

Aviation Industry Association chief executive Simon Wallace said the cost of jet fuel had doubled since March.

“Jet fuel has been [increasing] at a far greater rate than petrol has,” he said.

Wallace suspected the cuts would particularly impact regional routes.

“I think we will see some further reductions on some of Air New Zealand’s domestic services and, in a country like New Zealand, that is felt particularly in regional areas,” he said.

“Air New Zealand have signalled today they’re looking at some long haul routes. They haven’t announced exactly where those will be, but I think we can expect to see some, if not cutting routes completely, then a reduction in the frequency on those routes.”

He said Air New Zealand was not the only airline tightening its belt.

“The regional airlines like Air Chathams and others have also had to reduce some of their services, because it gets to a point where the customer can’t afford to pay these increased airfares.

“We’ve seen airlines globally do it in Europe, in particular, and even across the Tasman, with Qantas and Jetstar rationalising some of their routes.”

Even beyond airlines, the cost of jet fuel was causing issues.

“We are seeing the impact of jet fuel play out across the whole aviation system in New Zealand, so it’s not just Air New Zealand and the regional airlines.

“It’s tourism flight operators, it’s agricultural aviators, it’s helicopter contractors, everyone across the whole system is feeling this.”

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Oamaru Airport will lose its flight school after the business opted not to renew its lease, the Waitaki District Council says.

The New Zealand Airline Academy opened at the airport in 2018 with student numbers exceeding 200 in the past year.

It sought more land for hangars, increased airport access and a drop in landing charges as part of a new lease proposal last year.

The council said it offered substantial discounts to encourage growth when the school was starting out, but ongoing ratepayer subsidies weren’t appropriate for a large, successful business.

The lease would end in June.

The Airline Academy was contacted by RNZ for comment.

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Air New Zealand says it’s expecting a full-year loss of between $340m and $390m due to the soaring cost of jet fuel.

The airline expected fuel costs in the second half of its financial year to be $980m, compared to previous expectations of $740m.

It said that was driven by a $240m headwind to the expected result, including hedging.

Air New Zealand said it was looking at cost-cutting and reviewing capital expenditure plans.

Its fleet availability was improving significantly, it said, with all existing Boeing 787 aircraft expected to return to service by late June, and all Airbus aircraft by 2027.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

The mother of a New Zealander being held in ICE custody in the United States says she does not know where her daughter will end up, after she was taken to a different state.

Everlee Wihongi was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) when re-entering the US on a Green Card a month ago, following a family holiday in New Zealand.

Her mother Betty Wihongi was in Wisconsin and said Everlee was told she was being removed from a centre in California on Friday at midnight local time.

On Saturday morning, she had missed a scheduled meeting with her lawyer.

“They [ICE] never contacted our lawyer, so he was waiting for her on a Zoom call and she never showed up,” she said.

The online ICE detainee locator system said that Everlee was in “Camp East Montana” Texas, a camp where an average of about 3000 people per day live.

Detainees had described the camp to CNN as loud and unsanitary, where diseases spread easily and sleep was a luxury.

But then, as journalist David Farrier reported, Everlee disappeared from the detainee locator system.

On Monday night, Betty received information that her daughter was being held at an airport in Arizona.

“She doesn’t know how long she’ll be there, they told her not to get comfortable that she will be moved, but they don’t know where it going to be,” she said.

Betty said because Everlee had moved to another jurisdiction, she would have to restart the process to have her case heard in court.

“So every time you are moved, your court appearances, everything that you had before disappears and you start at the bottom again,” she said.

Betty said their lawyer had been seeing more and more cases of ICE moving detainees to make it difficult for lawyers to get hold of them and to set court appearances.

She said her daughter had been doing well considering, but it was taking a toll on Everlee, who was usually a happy and outgoing person.

“Just the moving around, the facilities, the guards, just everyone, it’s just their job to make your life miserable and hard.

“I think her greatest fear is that we don’t know where she is, that we won’t be able to locate her or find her and she’s going to be lost in all this,” she said.

The family were once again calling on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFAT) and Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters to do more to help.

“Reaching out to the US government [asking] what’s going on with the detainee? Why are you moving her around so much, why can’t she have her day in court?

“We don’t want them to provide funding for us, that’s something we’re taking care of. We don’t want them to give us a free ride for anything else.”

When contacted by RNZ, MFAT repeated its statement that the government was “unable to influence the immigration decisions of other governments”.

“The Ministry continues to provide consular assistance to the family of a New Zealander detained in Los Angeles. Consular officials are in regular contact with the individual and their family,” a spokesperson said.

The spokesperson said MFAT was unable to comment on the details of any individual case and Peters’ office referred RNZ to the ministry for comment.

As of this month, MFAT said it was aware of two New Zealand citizens in immigration detention in the United States.

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The mother of a New Zealander being held in ICE custody in the United States says she does not know where her daughter will end up, after she was taken to a different state.

Everlee Wihongi was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) when re-entering the US on a Green Card a month ago, following a family holiday in New Zealand.

Her mother Betty Wihongi was in Wisconsin and said Everlee was told she was being removed from a centre in California on Friday at midnight local time.

On Saturday morning, she had missed a scheduled meeting with her lawyer.

“They [ICE] never contacted our lawyer, so he was waiting for her on a Zoom call and she never showed up,” she said.

The online ICE detainee locator system said that Everlee was in “Camp East Montana” Texas, a camp where an average of about 3000 people per day live.

Detainees had described the camp to CNN as loud and unsanitary, where diseases spread easily and sleep was a luxury.

But then, as journalist David Farrier reported, Everlee disappeared from the detainee locator system.

On Monday night, Betty received information that her daughter was being held at an airport in Arizona.

“She doesn’t know how long she’ll be there, they told her not to get comfortable that she will be moved, but they don’t know where it going to be,” she said.

Betty said because Everlee had moved to another jurisdiction, she would have to restart the process to have her case heard in court.

“So every time you are moved, your court appearances, everything that you had before disappears and you start at the bottom again,” she said.

Betty said their lawyer had been seeing more and more cases of ICE moving detainees to make it difficult for lawyers to get hold of them and to set court appearances.

She said her daughter had been doing well considering, but it was taking a toll on Everlee, who was usually a happy and outgoing person.

“Just the moving around, the facilities, the guards, just everyone, it’s just their job to make your life miserable and hard.

“I think her greatest fear is that we don’t know where she is, that we won’t be able to locate her or find her and she’s going to be lost in all this,” she said.

The family were once again calling on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFAT) and Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters to do more to help.

“Reaching out to the US government [asking] what’s going on with the detainee? Why are you moving her around so much, why can’t she have her day in court?

“We don’t want them to provide funding for us, that’s something we’re taking care of. We don’t want them to give us a free ride for anything else.”

When contacted by RNZ, MFAT repeated its statement that the government was “unable to influence the immigration decisions of other governments”.

“The Ministry continues to provide consular assistance to the family of a New Zealander detained in Los Angeles. Consular officials are in regular contact with the individual and their family,” a spokesperson said.

The spokesperson said MFAT was unable to comment on the details of any individual case and Peters’ office referred RNZ to the ministry for comment.

As of this month, MFAT said it was aware of two New Zealand citizens in immigration detention in the United States.

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• The new warehouse enhances the company’s footprint in providing companies support in specialized goods logistics
• The addition is in line with the company’s plans in Asia Pacific to better support present and future storage needs for general commodities and specialized goods

“The new facility enhances our ability to provide fully integrated warehousing solutions for customers with both DG and non-DG requirements. Positioned within our KM19 main site, the key logistics hub in Thailand, we can leverage on shared resources, optimize costs, and deliver operational flexibility while maintaining the highest safety and compliance standards. This also enables us to offer scalable and efficient solutions which align with customers’ evolving supply chain needs,” said Pakpoom Chaokaweepong, General Manager – Warehousing Solution Operations, Rhenus Thailand.

Details of the new warehouse:

Hashtag: #Rhenus

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

– Published and distributed with permission of Media-Outreach.com.

Significant fuel rationing will only come into force if the country moves into the highest “phase” of its fuel response plan, the government says.

Emergency services, hospitals, banks, transport operators and electricity generators were among those who would have prioritised access to fuel if the ongoing crisis worsened.

The National Fuel Plan had four phases – ranging from minor to severe impacts – and phase three and four had been under consultation.

The government on Monday announced the “priority user” approach would only be used in phase four, which is a “major and ongoing fuel supply disruption”.

It was “highly unlikely” the country would ever reach phase three or four, Finance Minister Nicola Willis said.

Fuel access conditions under phase four:

• Critical users – priority and uncapped access. This includes emergency services, health, schools, courts, money services and lifeline utilities.
• Food and freight – uncapped access to fuel, subject to demand reduction requirements based on fuel‑saving plans. The government would monitor adherence to fuel-saving plans through spot checks.
• Commercial and community users – same access as food and freight, but higher savings targets in their fuel-saving plans. This includes businesses and organisations other than food and freight.
• General public – transaction limits at the pump aimed at reducing overall fuel use by an amount greater than what is expected for other groups.

“In the unlikely event we ever need to move to phase four, it is critical that business and industry have a clear understanding of the objectives and measures, and can put them into action,” said Willis.

“That is why we have taken the time to consult, and the feedback we received has shaped the revised plan. We heard that the earlier proposed approach, particularly around the priority bands, was too complex and needed simplifying.”

A jet fuel plan had also been developed alongside the aviation industry, “recognising that the types of users and demand for jet fuel are different to those for petrol and diesel”, the government announcement said.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Significant fuel rationing will only come into force if the country moves into the highest “phase” of its fuel response plan, the government says.

Emergency services, hospitals, banks, transport operators and electricity generators were among those who would have prioritised access to fuel if the ongoing crisis worsened.

The National Fuel Plan had four phases – ranging from minor to severe impacts – and phase three and four had been under consultation.

The government on Monday announced the “priority user” approach would only be used in phase four, which is a “major and ongoing fuel supply disruption”.

It was “highly unlikely” the country would ever reach phase three or four, Finance Minister Nicola Willis said.

Fuel access conditions under phase four:

• Critical users – priority and uncapped access. This includes emergency services, health, schools, courts, money services and lifeline utilities.
• Food and freight – uncapped access to fuel, subject to demand reduction requirements based on fuel‑saving plans. The government would monitor adherence to fuel-saving plans through spot checks.
• Commercial and community users – same access as food and freight, but higher savings targets in their fuel-saving plans. This includes businesses and organisations other than food and freight.
• General public – transaction limits at the pump aimed at reducing overall fuel use by an amount greater than what is expected for other groups.

“In the unlikely event we ever need to move to phase four, it is critical that business and industry have a clear understanding of the objectives and measures, and can put them into action,” said Willis.

“That is why we have taken the time to consult, and the feedback we received has shaped the revised plan. We heard that the earlier proposed approach, particularly around the priority bands, was too complex and needed simplifying.”

A jet fuel plan had also been developed alongside the aviation industry, “recognising that the types of users and demand for jet fuel are different to those for petrol and diesel”, the government announcement said.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

The Government has worked with business and industry to refine the Fuel Response Plan for petrol and diesel to ensure that in the event of a prolonged global fuel shortage the country is well-placed to act to protect the economy and livelihoods.

Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Associate Energy Minister Shane Jones today provided details of changes to the Fuel Response Plan following extensive consultation and engagement with business and industry, and other stakeholders.

“While New Zealand continues to have sufficient levels of fuel in the country, with more on the way, the situation in the Middle East is unpredictable and has already had a widespread impact on the global fuel market,” Nicola Willis says.

“The Government developed the Fuel Response Plan to give New Zealanders assurance about measures that would need to be taken to protect jobs, livelihoods and the economy should it become difficult to maintain sufficient fuel supply.

“Our priority is to ensure New Zealand continues to have sufficient fuel supply so that we never need to implement restrictive fuel savings measures. That is why we are focused on shoring up supply now and providing a buffer should the global situation worsen.

“We have already aligned fuel specifications with Australia to maximise the availability of fuel imports, invested $21.6 million to accelerate additional diesel storage capacity at Marsden Point, and secured a deal with Z Energy to procure an additional 90 million litres of diesel.

“Today we have announced that we have finalised the Z Energy deal and the additional diesel – equivalent to nine days of supply – will be in the Marsden Point tanks by the end of June, providing New Zealand with a strategic diesel reserve.

“Modelled scenarios indicate that it is highly unlikely we would ever get to Phase 3 or 4 of the Fuel Response Plan, but as a prudent Government we are ensuring that New Zealand is prepared for whatever the global environment brings. It is better to have a plan you don’t use, than to need one and be caught short. 

“In the unlikely event we ever need to move to Phase 4, it is critical that business and industry have a clear understanding of the objectives and measures, and can put them into action. 

“That is why we have taken the time to consult, and the feedback we received has shaped the revised plan. We heard that the earlier proposed approach, particularly around the priority bands, was too complex and needed simplifying.”

Any implementation of priority users for fuel has been moved from Phase 3 to Phase 4. Phase 3 will instead focus more heavily on supply levers such as releasing fuel reserves, and demand reduction actions such as working with businesses on voluntary plans to reduce their fuel use.

A move to Phase 4 would occur only if there was a genuine likelihood of a severe and prolonged disruption, such as the loss of a large share of fuel supply for many months. While this is highly unlikely, the Government would set a fuel reduction target and apply a simplified framework of priority users to ensure fuel goes where it’s needed most.

Fuel access under Phase 4:

• Critical users – priority and uncapped access. This includes emergency services, health, schools, courts, money services and lifeline utilities.
• Food and freight – uncapped access to fuel, subject to demand reduction requirements based on fuel‑saving plans. The Government would monitor adherence to fuel-saving plans through spot checks.
• Commercial and community users – same access as food and freight, but higher savings targets in their fuel-saving plans. This includes businesses and organisations other than food and freight.
• General public – transaction limits at the pump aimed at reducing overall fuel use by an amount greater than what is expected for other groups.

The levels of fuel reduction for food and freight, other commercial and community users, and the general public would depend on the fuel reduction target set by the Government, which itself would depend on the scale of disruption at the time.

A plan for jet fuel has been developed alongside the aviation industry, recognising that the types of users and demand for jet fuel are different to those for petrol and diesel.

“The key to the Fuel Response Plan is to be flexible and adaptable to any given scenario. We intend for this plan to guide government, business and industry and the public through any scenario, with actionable and proportionate measures that can be tailored to the situation and adjusted if they aren’t working as expected.”

During Ministers’ and officials’ recent travel to Singapore and South Korea, trading houses of the major fuel companies that supply New Zealand gave confidence about continued supply to New Zealand and assurance that they will continue to share information about forward orders and any significant disruptions.

Shane Jones says the plan requires industry co-operation for it to work as intended.

“Our suppliers continue to ship fuel to New Zealand with no disruptions. However, global volatility means it’s important we are prepared for all potential scenarios.

“Given a move to Phase 4 would occur only if we could see a major and ongoing fuel supply disruption, we are confident fuel suppliers and users will co-operate with the Government’s proposed approach to avoid Phase 4.

“Since entering Phase 1, the Government has strengthened fuel resilience by securing additional diesel supply, aligning fuel specifications with Australia, and working closely with industry and communities on contingency planning.

“The Prime Minister, Ministers and agencies are in close contact with other governments and suppliers of refined products to ensure co-operative relationships at the highest level.

“We are taking active steps to bolster New Zealand’s fuel resilience and will continue to work closely with key stakeholders to respond to whatever the global environment brings,” Shane Jones says.

More information on the Fuel Response Plan is available on the MBIE website.

Attached:

• Factsheet
• Q&A
• Table of users within each group under Phase 4 prioritisation framework

MIL OSI

The New Zealand Army has completed its first Exercise Balikatan in the Philippines, improving its ability to fight a modern war amid the heat, humidity and venomous snakes and insects of the jungle.

New Zealand, Australia, Philippines, United States, Canada, France and Japan celebrated the successful completion of Balikatan 2026 during a closing ceremony at Camp Aguinaldo, Manila last week.

Balikatan, meaning “shoulder to shoulder” in the local Tagalog language, is a bilateral US-Philippines annual exercise designed to strengthen regional security through combined air, land, sea, cyber and space operations featuring maritime drills, coastal defence training, joint live-fire exercises and humanitarian projects.

Around 70 New Zealand Defence Force personnel, primarily from the NZ Army, have been in the Philippines for Exercise Balikatan since mid-April.

About 40 of those personnel are a NZ Army light infantry platoon group from 2nd/1st Battalion, Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment, which was integrated into an Australian Army light infantry company from 5th/7th Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment, to form Combat Team Jackal.

The NZ Army light infantry platoon has participated across a range of scenarios, shoulder to shoulder with Australian, Philippine and US personnel against a fictitious opposing force, as part of larger formations that cannot be easily replicated in New Zealand.

They also took part in jungle training delivered by the Philippine Marine Corps, and close-combat shooting in the jungle environment.

The New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) also deployed movement operators, health specialists, cyber specialists, communications experts, and other supporting personnel, gaining valuable experience and demonstrating capability to partners.

In the lead up to Balikatan, defence cooperation between New Zealand and the Philippines has been strengthened.

In the past two years, New Zealand and the Philippines have signed a Mutual Logistics Supporting Arrangement, held bilateral defence talks, signed the Status of Visiting Forces Agreement, participated as an observer to Exercise Balikatan in 2025, and held an inaugural maritime dialogue.

The NZDF’s participation in Balikatan reflects a strategic commitment to strengthening regional partnerships, enhancing tactical and operational interoperability, and contributing to regional stability in support of the international rules-based system in the Indo-Pacific.

Lieutenant Colonel Jason Tinsley, Senior National Officer for the contingent says New Zealand is fortunate to have likeminded partners within the Indo-Pacific region.

“A shared sense of purpose for maintaining stability and promoting the international rules-based order has made for an excellent working relationship with our partners on Exercise Balikatan.”

The unique environment of the Philippines has provided a valuable training ground.

“Unlike our Australian and Filipino colleagues, we are not routinely exposed to the dangers of heat, poisonous snakes, and virus-carrying insects,” Lieutenant Colonel Tinsley said.

“Facing and overcoming these challenges provides an excellent opportunity to enhance combat effectiveness in environments very different to New Zealand.”

The NZ Army light infantry platoon group as part of Combat Team Jackal is now taking part in Exercise Salaknib, also in the Philippines and involving the host country, Australia, Japan, the United States, and for the first time New Zealand.

Salaknib’s focus is conducting complex, multi-domain operations, including live-fire events, aviation and counter mobility operations and jungle training.

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The Ryans Road Industrial Development in Christchurch, that will enable 126 industrial lots has been consented through Fast-track, Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop says. 

Carter Group Limited lodged its application in April 2025 for the Ryans Road Development. 

Approval has taken around nine months following the commencement of the expert panel, including approximately four months of suspension.

This is the 21st project to be approved under the fast-track approvals process, and the second industrial land project approved.

“Ryans Road covers 57.6 hectares at 104 Ryans Road, Harewood, near Christchurch International Airport. It would enable the development of an industrial subdivision of 126 freehold industrial lots along with supporting infrastructure such as roads, water servicing utilities and landscaping”, Mr Bishop says. 

“The development is expected to support 755 construction sector full-time equivalent jobs (across the build periods), injecting approximately $259m of GDP into the Christchurch economy.

“The project is intended to help address demand for industrial land in Canterbury -particularly for businesses that benefit from proximity to the airport, such as logistics, warehousing and light manufacturing. 

“The Ryans Road development is another example of bringing forward well-located industrial land that can support growth and productivity in our cities.”

Notes to editor 
For more information about the project: Ryans Road Industrial Development

Fast-track by the numbers: 
•    21 projects approved by expert panels. 
•    18 projects with expert panels appointed. 
•    44projects currently progressing through the Fast-track process. 27active substantive and 17 referral applications.
•    47projects have been referred to Fast-track by the Minister for Infrastructure. 
•    149 projects are listed in Schedule 2 of the Fast-track Approvals Act, meaning they can apply for Fast-track approval. 
•    On average, it has taken 119 working days for decisions on substantive applications from when officials determine an application is complete and in-scope.

Fast-track projects approved by expert panels: 
•    Arataki [Housing/Land]  
•    Ashbourne [Housing/Land]  
•    Ayrburn Screen Hub [Infrastructure]
•    Green Steel [Infrastructure] 
•    Homestead Bay [Housing/Land] 
•    Bledisloe North Wharf and Fergusson North Berth Extension [Infrastructure]  
•    Drury Metropolitan Centre – Consolidated Stages 1 and 2 [Housing/Land] 
•    Drury Quarry Expansion – Sutton Block [Mining/Quarrying] 
•    Kings Quarry Expansion – Stages 2 and 3 [Mining/Quarrying] 
•    Maitahi Village [Housing/Land] 
•    Milldale – Stages 4C and 10 to 13 [Housing/Land] 
•    Pound Road [Housing/Land]  
•    Rangitoopuni [Housing/Land]  
•    Ryans Road [Housing/Land]  
•    Southland Wind Farm Project [Infrastructure]
•    Sunfield [Housing/Land]  
•    Tekapo Power Scheme – Applications for Replacement Resource Consents [Renewable energy] 
•    Takitimu North Link – Stage 2 [Infrastructure] 
•    Waihi North [Mining/Quarrying] 
•    Waitaha Hydro [Renewable energy] 
•    Waitākere District Court – New Courthouse Project [Infrastructure]

Expert panels have been appointed for:

•    Bendigo-Ophir Gold Project  
•    Bream Bay Sand Extraction Project
•    Central and Southern Block Mining Project
•    Delmore
•    Downtown Carpark Site Development
•    Foxton Solar Farm
•    Haldon Solar Farm 
•    Hananui Aquaculture Project 
•    Kaimai Hydro-Electric Power Scheme 
•    Lake Pūkaki Hydro Storage and Dam Resilience Works 
•    Mahinerangi Wind Farm 
•    Mt Iron Junction
•    Northwest Rapid Transit
•    State Highway 1 North Canterbury – Woodend Bypass Project (Belfast to Pegasus)
•    Stella Passage Development
•    The Point Mission Bay 
•    The Point Solar Farm 
•    Wellington International Airport Southern Seawall Renewal

MIL OSI

The Interislander ferry Kaitaki blackout event, when it lost power south of Wellington in January 2023, was a close call, and would have been traumatising for those onboard when the ferry lost power.

MIL OSI

Dubai-based airline Emirates says it has restored 96 percent of its global network, although its Auckland service continues to operate at a reduced level.

The airline faced significant disruption as the United Arab Emirates came under attack by Iranian drones and missiles, leading to the closure of Dubai International Airport.

The airline said it was travelling at 75 percent of its pre-Iran war capacity.

Emirates was operating its Dubai-Auckland direct service four days a week, compared to daily flights before the war.

Its Dubai-Sydney-Christchurch service continues to operate daily.

Emirates was yet to say when it would increase its Auckland service back to pre-war levels, with the current schedule published to the end of May.

The airline said customers booked from April 2 would be allowed one free date change across all cabin classes, and could also hold a fare for 24 hours at no cost.

Prior to the war, Dubai International Airport was the second busiest in the world, carrying 95.2 million passengers in 2025.

However, passenger traffic had dropped significantly this year according to the government of Dubai media office.

The airport saw 18.6 million passengers in the first quarter, down nearly 21 percent from a year ago, and passenger traffic in March was 2.5 million, down almost 66 percent.

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A new law that is intended to simplify New Zealand’s rules around leave has the potential to add complexity – and create difficulties particularly for people being paid commission, some legal experts say.

Submissions have been received on the Employment Leave Bill, which is to replace the Holidays Act.

It introduces changes such as annual and sick leave being accrued according to time worked, and a new “otherwise working day” test for public holidays.

But it also says that all leave taken will be paid at an hourly rate – and for those who are not on a set salary, the leave will be taken at the “lowest hourly rate payable for the day on which leave is taken”. Fixed allowances are included, but not things like commission.

Jim Roberts, a partner at Hesketh Henry, said this was potentially a big problem. “In its simplest form, holiday payments are going from being calculated on everything earned to being calculated on the lowest possible rate.”

Roberts said it would not affect people who did not usually get overtime or commission but could be very significant for those who did.

“There are salespeople who are set up on close to, or the minimum wage, as a retainer, and everything else is commission. Their annual holidays will be at minimum wage. There is no incentive whatsoever for those employees to ever take annual holidays. For example, an employee who earns 80 percent by commissions now gets holidays at paid 20 percent. Under the current [Act] they are 100 percent.

“The same applies to salaried and wage earners who work a lot of overtime. These are usually trades, other non-university based qualifications, and unqualified people working in large industry, manufacturing and labouring roles. The latter category, which is the largest, tend to be the lowest paid. They also tend to include people employed in 24/7 occupations, i.e. shift workers, for example at ports, hospitals, airports and any other operations that operate 24 hours a day every day of the year.

“It is the employees with low base rates supplemented with overtime or commissions who are set to lose the most. The overtime group was heavily unionised, which is how overtime payments were achieved in the first place. There is no impact whatsoever on an office-based worker working Monday to Friday on solely a salary.

“The workforce in the centre of towns and cities will be largely unaffected. There is a significant and disproportionate difference between these two groups. The former (overtime and commission employees) would take annual holidays with a significant loss of pay for that period. The latter (salary only employees) would take holidays with no loss of pay at all.”

Matt Harrop, special counsel at Duncan Cotterill, said it was an area that could still be tweaked.

People who were paid bonuses would also be affected, he said.

“For employees who have a large component of their pay that’s dealt with in bonuses, that’s going to be a big change.

“And that is actually for well-paid members of society more often than not. Those who work in the banking space, for example… there will be tweaks, I think, as to those very small aspects of it.”

He said the bill was trying to come up with the most simple system possible without undermining groups of people.

“There are arguments from certain employee groups and unions saying the setting is not right and it has a disproportionate effect on the most vulnerable groups in society because they tend to work the more variable patterns.

“But equally, you have some employers saying that doesn’t work for us as well. For example, when the horticulture and retail sector is saying the costs of having casual employment are going to go up and that doesn’t work.”

He said the calculation would have to change somehow to create a simpler system and that would have flow-on effects.

“It’s a question of do we want a simpler system with the associated effects or do we leave things in the broken state that they are? That’s the ultimate question, I think.

“The way modern work patterns are, there are a lot of inputs and there is a lot of variability. And that’s what the issue is when you lay this out into practical reality, is that people work complicated patterns.

“They have different amounts of pay they earn for different things. And systematising that in a way that can be rolled out at scale is not straightforward.”

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

When artificial intelligence (AI) comes up in Australian enterprise IT discussions, the focus tends to centre on generative tools, intelligent copilots, and innovation at the edges of the business. However, some of the most concrete and measurable uses of AI are emerging deep in enterprise operational workflows, such as corporate travel management.

According to Jonathan Beeby, managing director, SAP Concur Australia and New Zealand business travel in Australia is gaining real momentum. “SAP Concur data shows that flight bookings in Australia increased almost 10% in 2025 compared to 2024. March 2025 achieved the highest velocity, with corporate bookings surging more than 44% compared to March 2024, reflecting a sharp rebound in corporate travel demand,” he said.

As travel activity continues to accelerate in 2026, Australian organisations are rethinking how travel decisions are controlled and authorised. This shift isn’t just about updating corporate travel policies. It’s about making smarter decisions earlier, moving intelligence upstream of expenditure rather than downstream of it.

Consequently, pre-travel authorisation powered by AI is quietly becoming one of the most pragmatic AI applications in enterprise finance, according to SAP Concur.

Jonathan Beeby, managing director, SAP Concur Australia and New Zealand said, “Travel and expense management is no longer about post audits but preventative control. In traditional travel and expense programs, compliance was largely reactive: employees book trips, later file expenses, and finance teams audit them against policy afterwards. That approach can identify where policy was breached, but it offers little in the way of early prevention, and cost visibility and management.

“In Australia, that shift toward proactive governance is gaining momentum. Business travel surged over the past year as organisations resume commercial travel and business events post-pandemic. Demand for control over discretionary spend is tightening as finance leaders seek earlier visibility, and internal audit teams push for stronger evidence of upfront approval. Modern travellers also expect digital workflows that are intuitive and fast. These combined pressures are driving enterprise adoption of intelligent pre-travel authorisation, where AI and automation inform decisions before bookings are confirmed.”  

Pre-travel authorisation workflows require employees to submit structured trip requests, including rationale, cost estimates, and any policy exceptions. AI and agents are transforming the process.

In contemporary enterprise platforms, AI and agents are being deployed to automatically suggest or pre-fill estimated travel costs based on historical spend patterns; flag out-of-policy items in real time; and tailor approval routing according to risk categories, spend thresholds, and employee profiles.

Jonathan Beeby said, “Intelligent automation interprets context and provides richer guidance at the point of request rather than relying solely on rigid, static business rules. This helps organisations scale governance controls without multiplying manual checks, giving finance teams early insight, and travellers clearer guidance toward compliant choices.

“One of the most compelling benefits of AI-driven travel requests is the quality of data created. Rather than free-text explanations submitted after travel, structured requests capture why the business travel is necessary, anticipated costs, and which manager approved the itinerary and under what conditions. This produces a defensible, machine-readable audit trail that shows approvals, edits, and exceptions over time; a powerful asset as Australian organisations face greater oversight from boards and internal audit functions.”

Solutions such as the Concur Request capability maintain a detailed audit trail showing approvals, changes and exceptions over time and automatically raise flags for review, providing advance spend visibility for Australian finance leaders.

One of the standout advantages of embedding AI in pre-travel authorisation is that it shifts travel data from being a lagging indicator to a leading signal of future expenditure. By consolidating authorised travel commitments ahead of time, finance teams gain a clearer view of upcoming costs long before they hit the general ledger.

This early insight supports better forecasting and proactive budget management, which is particularly valuable in Australia’s geographically dispersed market where aviation and accommodation pricing can vary significantly by region. This proactive intelligence helps CFOs understand emerging travel trends and cost pressures without having to manually wrangle spreadsheets or disparate systems.

Jonathan Beeby said, “The common concern around pre-travel authorisation is the risk of creating process friction that delays routine travel. Smart AI workflows are central to addressing this. They can reduce repetitive data entry and minimise back-and-forth between travellers and approvers, so that low-risk or recurring trips can move quickly through the system, while higher-risk requests trigger additional scrutiny.

“This typically means fewer rejected expense claims for employees, fewer surprises after trips have been taken, and a smoother overall experience; a valuable differentiation in Australia’s increasingly competitive talent market.”  

Pre-travel authorisation is a standout AI example because of its practical utility. This isn’t research code or speculative innovation, it’s an operational capability delivering measurable outcomes including reduced risk, stronger compliance, better data, and faster decisions. Embedding intelligence into day-to-day workflows can demonstrate how AI can be applied sensibly to deliver tangible business value.

As corporate travel continues to rebound, more Australian organisations are recognising that the most impactful place to apply intelligence is before spending is committed, at the moment of intent. AI-driven pre-travel authorisation is emerging as a clear example of how enterprise technology can strengthen governance not by adding layers of control, but by embedding smart decision support where it matters most.

MIL OSI

The Green Party says today’s local government reorganisation announcement is fundamentally undemocratic, shows a lack of understanding of how local government operates, and ignores the findings of the Government’s own expert bodies.

“Today’s announcement is fundamentally undemocratic and a cynical move in election year. None of the coalition parties campaigned on this,” says Green Party spokesperson for Local Government, Mike Davidson.

“It shows a disregard for community input, and ignores the findings of both the independent Infrastructure Commission and the Future for Local Government Working Group.”

Councils are in the middle of working on their Annual Plans, which must be signed off by the end of June. They are simultaneously working through sweeping reforms to the Resource Management Act, emergency management, rates caps, and the local government sector itself.

“Councils are trying to balance maintaining and building infrastructure with keeping rates affordable. This timeline leaves little time for the thoughtful and thorough cross-council mahi needed by elected members and staff, and no time to engage communities in what their future might be.”

“It’s death by a thousand cuts. The Government originally gave councils years to consider these changes, and is now giving top-down direction that ignores community voice. This is all from a Government who claimed, over and over, to be about localism.”

“These decisions are complex and need options to be explored, with input from a wide range of stakeholders. Councils have different water governance structures, major assets like ports and airports, and different community needs.”

“Transitional boards and political appointments hand-picked by the Ministers will undermine democratic decision-making at a local level. That’s something the National Party campaigned on at the last election, and something they have failed to deliver on.”

“The National Party continue to blame others rather than tackle the biggest issues councils and our communities actually face: aging infrastructure, affordability driven by a lack of alternative funding tools, rising inequality, and the increasing impact of climate-driven weather events.”

“The Greens oppose this top-down approach. We urge the Government to work with councils and communities to come up with enduring solutions that will best serve our communities now and into the future,” says Davidson.

MIL OSI

The New Zealand Army’s Brigadier Esther Harrop has attended 31 Anzac Day services in uniform around the world but this year’s ceremony in Samoa, and the story of sixpence per crate of bananas and her grandfather’s Spitfire, brought her to tears.

Following the service, Brigadier Harrop presented a Second World War photo of her grandfather, then Flight Sergeant Andrew Kronfeld, to the local Returned and Services Association.

The image is of him sitting in the cockpit of the Royal Air Force Spitfire Mark Vb named Western Samoa, which had been bought with the £5,723 Western Samoa’s banana farmers raised by contributing six pence per crate of exported bananas.

The aircraft was gifted to 485 New Zealand Squadron and Flight Sergeant Kronfeld, whose family came from Lotofaga on the south coast of Upolu, was chosen to fly it.

Brigadier Harrop said she loved sharing the “amazing” story of Samoa’s contribution to the Second World War.

“The president of the RSA, Tuala Iosefo Ponifasio, who was formerly the deputy prime minister of Samoa, had not heard this story at all.

“They did not know they had a Samoan Spitfire, let alone that there was a New Zealand-Samoan pilot.

“I was so proud. The reaction from the people who hadn’t heard this story was so cool… they wanted to celebrate this.”

Brigadier Harrop never met her grandfather but found out about the Spitfire and bananas story in about 2015.

Flight Sergeant Kronfeld was one of two Polynesian faces in his tranche when 90 Commonwealth pilots trained in Winnipeg in Canada, and he was the top graduate.

He flew the Spitfire in Europe and shot down a German Messerschmitt Bf 109 over France. He survived the war but the aircraft, which was transferred to an American volunteer unit, was later destroyed.

In 1941 he went to Calcutta, now Kolkata, in India where he met his wife, and their daughter (Brigadier Harrop’s mother Sandy Harrop) was also born there.

Brigadier Harrop said the Spitfire symbolised Samoa’s direct and voluntary contribution to the Allied war effort, and its enduring bond with New Zealand service personnel.

“We are incredibly proud of his service, and it was particularly special to represent the NZDF and my family on Anzac Day in our ancestral home of Samoa.”

MIL OSI

A student pilot “misjudged the landing” and his plane’s propellor struck the ground at Whanganui Airport on Tuesday afternoon, causing some damage and leaving the student shaken up.

New Zealand Airline Academy director and head of training Celroy Mascarenhas said a student was practising take-offs and landings on a solo flight, when he “misjudged the landing”.

The student is safe, Mascarenhas said, but “shaken up a little bit”.

The airplane had small amounts of damage, and was being assessed.

He said the student would receive “a bit of remedial training to fix the propeller technique”.

The student was flying solo in a small two-seater plane, which he had done about five times prior and successfully landed, Mascarenhas said.

“We don’t want these things happening. It’s rather unfortunate, but it’s learning for us.”

FENZ told RNZ it had received reports about an incident at the airport.

However, a spokesperson said “on arrival the crews were stood down”.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade says it’s aware of a New Zealander onboard the MV Hondius cruise ship, which is experiencing a suspected deadly hantavirus outbreak.

A ministry spokesperson says it’s in contact with the New Zealander, who hasn’t requested consular assistance.

The ship, which was travelling from Argentina to the Canary Islands, is currently anchored off the coast of Cape Verde.

The Dutch cruise company, Oceanwide Expeditions, says the number of confirmed hantavirus cases connected to the outbreak onboard has risen to two.

Hantavirus tended to be spread by rodents and New Zealand microbiologist Siouxsie Wiles said it was not expected on a cruise ship.

In a statement, Oceanwide Expeditions said two MV Hondius crew members, one British and one Dutch, continued to present with acute respiratory symptoms and required urgent medical attention.

One had mild symptoms, the other had severe, it said, without specifying further.

“At this time, no other persons with symptoms have been identified,” the company said.

“Dutch authorities are actively preparing a medical evacuation of the two symptomatic individuals along with an individual associated with [a German guest] that passed away on May 2,” Oceanwide Expeditions said.

It would include two specialised medical aircraft but the timing of the evacuation had not yet been confirmed, it said.

The first identified case was confirmed in a British national who the company said remained in a critical but stable condition in South Africa.

The ship was at its highest health response level with isolation measures, hygiene protocols and monitoring in place, the statement said.

The company said the World Health Organisation has confirmed hantavirus was also present in a Dutch woman who died in Saint Helena.

Her husband, a Dutch national as well, died onboard on 11 April.

She was accompanying his repatriation back to the Netherlands when she also fell ill during the return journey and later died.

Her husband’s cause of death and that of the German national were not yet known.

Oceanwide Expeditions said a definitive disembarkation point for the 149 passengers still onboard had not yet been finalised.

“The atmosphere on board MV Hondius remains calm, with passengers generally composed. Oceanwide Expeditions is working to provide clarity and reassurance to guests,” it said.

The company said it was in close contact with those directly involved and their families.

Timeline provided by Ocean Expeditions:

• On 11 April, a passenger died on board. The cause of death could not be determined on board.
• On 24 April, this passenger was disembarked on St Helena, with his wife accompanying the repatriation.
• On 27 April, Oceanwide Expeditions was informed that the wife had become unwell during the return journey and had later died. Both passengers were Dutch nationals.
• On 27 April, another passenger became seriously ill and was medically evacuated to South Africa. This British national was currently being treated in the intensive care unit in Johannesburg in a critical but stable condition. A variant of hantavirus had been identified in this patient.
• On 2 May, another passenger on board died. The cause has not yet been established. This passenger was of German nationality.
• On 4 May, a variant of hantavirus was identified as being present in the Dutch woman who died in Saint Helena.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

A woman out for a walk on Wellington’s south coast says she was surprised to come across what appears to be part of a door from a plane.

Catherine* took pictures and video, with them showing a cream coloured curved panel with a small broken window wedged under a driftwood log, surrounded by yellow tape.

Do you know more? Email sammy.carter@rnz.co.nz

She popped it onto social media, as did another person separately, with the posts sparking dozens of comments from people trying to work out what the object was.

“I thought it was very strange, my first thought is it looked like it was from a plane because of the shape of the window,” Catherine told RNZ.

The mystery has sparked dozens of comments, with some saying its numbered markings seem to indicate it was from a plane.

“(I) haven’t heard of anything happening in this area, so when I saw it, I assumed it maybe had washed up from overseas.”

The yellow tape around the door caught Catherine’s attention, at first assuming it was a bonfire or broken glass.

“It’s not something you expect to see on a morning walk.”

RNZ sent pics to Ardome Flying School chief executive and aviation commentator Irene King.

She said the object appeared to be the interior of door from a small plane.

“Our engineers have had a look at it and they think that it’s an interior fit out of an aircraft. Of course, the great mystery is – how the heck did it get there?”

The Civil Aviation Authority said no one had contacted it about the item.

But it reviewed the picture sent by RNZ, and based on the numbers printed on a section of the door it appeared part of it was manufactured in September 1982.

It said unfortunately it could not identify it further.

King said that, considering how unmarked the object looked, she did not believe it had been in the sea for a long time.

“It’s very clean. Normally, when aircraft parts sit in water for any period of time you get all sorts of barnacle and sea life build up.

“It looks quite pristine, and it looks like somebody’s just placed it there.”

She referenced the infamous MH370 disappearance in 2014, where pieces of debris were found by members of the public on coastlines in the years after, including a part of the ring wing.

She also said it’s hard to lose interior pieces of aircraft’s “just like that”, saying a plane had to be disassembled.

“It’s very unusual.”

The massive flooding event in Wellington last month saw Ōwhiro Stream flood, damaging homes and washing debris out to the bay.

* RNZ has agreed to not use her full name.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Fire and Emergency New Zealand has axed the only paid role on Aotea Great Barrier Island.

Documents seen by RNZ show the new arrangement – sending staff from the mainland — will cost the fire service more than retaining an officer on the island.

Aotea Great Barrier Island is home to around 1250 residents, 50 of whom are volunteers in the local fire brigade.

The island’s voluntary chief fire officer, Wayne Anderson, says volunteers have been supported by a paid, part-time, person on the island since 2000, when the role was funded by Auckland City Council.

In 2017, that position transferred to Fire and Emergency, which ended the contracted role on April 24.

Going forward, staff from Counties Manukau will provide support for the island, a FENZ spokesperson said.

Aotea Great Barrier local board chair, Izzy Fordham, said the community was “pretty devastated” by the decision to cut the on-island role.

“To me, it just doesn’t make sense, and it’s not making sense to our volunteer fire committee, and it’s certainly not making sense to the community,” she said.

“It’s a really vital role for the island, and there seems to be some thinking within the higher management of FENZ that it can be run from the mainland… but that’s not really going to work that well.”

A FENZ spokesperson said the organisation looked at keeping the on-island role, taking into consideration the workload, existing district support, and incident data.

That data showed, on average, crews attended five medical call outs and two structure fires each year.

Mr Anderson said those figures didn’t reflect the times volunteers dealt with floods, or supported the island’s sole paramedic.

However, the low call-out numbers reflected years of fire prevention work which was now at risk, he said.

“It’s going to affect our risk reduction plans definitely because they’ll be flying someone over who nobody knows. We’re a small community, everyone knows everyone, and respect is big, but a stranger going to a house, putting in a smoke alarm, is not going to happen.”

Mr Anderson said that due to the island’s isolation, it needed to be well-resourced, but it was being abandoned.

“Especially in a severe weather event or a tsunami, we’re going to be on our own for quite a few days,” he said.

“In (Cyclone) Gabrielle, the airport was closed for two days. and we had no ferry for a week. The island was cut off into four pieces because of landslides and flooding.

When things escalate, where are these resources, how are these resources going to get here?”

Internal FENZ advice seen by RNZ showed that flying staff to the island would cost more, be less practical than keeping the on-island role, and impact support for mainland stations.

Travel to the island was not straight-forward, Mr Anderson said, and the ongoing impact of rising fuel prices on flight costs and frequency was unknown.

FENZ staff travelling to Aotea from Auckland would “spend a lot of time at the airport,” he said.

“… we do get a lot of cancellations because of weather, and sometimes you’ve spent a long time in the airport waiting for the fog to clear, waiting for the rain to clear.”

According to FENZ, the contract for the on-island support officer was put in place in 2022, with an agreement to review “its ongoing need against broader organisational priorities”.

“This decision to not appoint a permanent role was not made due to cost,” a FENZ spokesperson said.

“Currently a group manager visits the island approximately four times a year. The future arrangement will see the island supported by specialists, including risk reduction advisors, community readiness and recovery advisors and volunteer support officers. These arrangements will have a more regular schedule, likely to be monthly.”

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

The Rescue Coordination Centre says it does not expect to make less use of air ambulance helicopters for search and rescue (SAR) despite costs skyrocketing.

The hourly rate the three helicopter providers charge jumped on Friday from a minimum $8200 an hour to $13,450 an hour.

The much higher new rate incorporates fuel costs but was calculated before the steep rises in these due to the Iran war. Health NZ and ACC, which set the rates, said they would not revisit the fuel costs in the rate for another year.

Those most exposed to the higher rate are Maritime NZ’s Rescue Coordination Centre (RCC) and the police, which are the country’s only two lead agencies for search and rescue. When they choose to send a chopper on a job, they must pay for it.

“Our priority is to ensure the most appropriate assets are used for a SAR operation,” Maritime NZ told RNZ.

“No two operations are the same. Depending on the circumstances – weather, location and the other considerations we must take into account – the best response might be people on foot, vessels, land vehicles or aircraft. Often it is a combination of these.

“Taking all the circumstances into account, a capable rescue helicopter, due to its speed, trained crew and flexibility, even with the cost increases, will continue to often be the most cost-effective response in comparison to other options.

“When that is the case, we will task the rescue helicopter.”

RCC had $3.9m for SAR operations this year. “This has not changed due to the recent cost increases, and we expect to spend within budget at year end.”

The police said air ambulances were one of a range of assets, and they would always deploy the most appropriate one, though frontline responders have questioned if that was always the case, in RNZ’s recent reporting.

“Where life is at risk and time is of the essence, police will always prioritise that by ensuring the most appropriate assets are deployed,” they said.

“As with all emergency responses, incidents are often unforeseen and police deal with these responses as they arise.

“Police budgets contain commercial sensitivities and will not be disclosed but are designed to prioritise operational spending for such events.”

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Business travellers are among those reducing their visits to regions due to Air New Zealand ditching some flights, an expert says.

More cutbacks to flights came to light on Thursday after Nelson mayor Nick Smith and Bay of Plenty MP Tom Rutherford posted about them on social media.

In a post to his Facebook page, Nick Smith said Air New Zealand was cutting an additional 23 Nelson flights to and from Auckland, 32 to Wellington and 15 to and from Christchurch between 29 June to 26 July.

“This is the third time Nelson flights to and from Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch have been axed temporarily since the war in Iran started and brings the total number of flights lost to 266 or about 12,000 seats,” Smith said in his post.

“This is disappointing news for Nelson. While it is understandable, with no concrete signs of de-escalation of the oil crisis in the Middle East, it will have an impact on the number of visitors to the region and make it more difficult for people travelling for work, to access healthcare and take holidays outside the region.”

Nelson Regional Development Agency visitor destination manager Craig Boodee told Morning Report, also agreed the cuts were a concern for the region.

“It does create hesitation for people to book travel, because they might think their flights will get cancelled. And, I understand why Air New Zealand has to make some of these cuts to save on costs, many of the tourism operators are having to do the same,” Boodee said.

“Winter is our quiet time of year, about 15 percent of our visitor spend happens over winter. We need every visitor we can get during that time.”

Boodee said it was not just people cutting back on their holidays that was impacting tourism.

“Business visitors that come on monthly sales calls, they’re spreading that out now. They’re pushing it out to about six weekly.

“That’s our bread and butter over winter. Those regular business visitors that come in, they often pay a little higher prices for accommodation, and they often get their breakfast and dinner covered.

“So, it’s critical. We need those visitors,” he said.

Boodee was worried about the long-term future of regional services.

“Forward bookings are looking good, so we need these flights to come back. We can’t let that business slip between our fingers. It’s critical we get flight availability back onto the network.”

He said some tour operators have told him they’ve had their best summer since Covid.

Higher fuel costs to blame

In a statement, Air New Zealand confirmed it had made a number of changes to its schedule in July, in response to increased fuel costs.

“These consolidations affect around 2 percent of passengers due to travel across this period. We’ve targeted the consolidations to minimise disruption and to ensure that the vast majority of impacted customers can still travel on the same day.”

The airline said customers whose updated flight didn’t suit their plans could choose a refund or credit.

Flights to Tauranga have also been cut back, said Bay of Plenty MP Tom Rutherford who also posted on his social media about the change.

“From 29 June to 26 July they will be removing 27 return flights on the Tauranga-Auckland route, 12 return flights on the Tauranga-Wellington route, and five return flights on the Tauranga-Christchurch route,” Rutherford posted.

Subsidies a possibility

The minister in charge of aviation says subsidies for regional airlines will have to be considered as more flights to regional airports are cut.

Regional airlines including Air Chathams, Sounds Air and Island Air have drawn down loans from the Government – a measure that was already underway before the war in the Middle East.

James Meager told Nine to Noon subsidies for airlines would not be his first choice, but will have to be considered.

He says advice from officials on how to support the sector is expected in a couple of weeks.

Cuts to flights a global issue

Simon Calder, travel correspondent for The Independent told on Morning Report, flight cutbacks could become much worse later in the year, if the Iran war situation remained unchanged.

“By September, I am going to predict airlines in Europe will be cancelling flights, not just in the tens of thousands, possibly in the hundreds of thousands, keeping planes on the ground, because, with the very high price of fuel, it won’t be worth flying them,” he said.

“This is all combined with a reduction in demand, simply because people in Europe are thinking, well, I’m not really sure what’s going on in the world. I don’t want to commit. This is all very bad news for the airlines.”

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand