Air New Zealand pauses Auckland to Chicago non-stop service
(Reuters) - Air New Zealand said on Tuesday it plans to pause its Auckland to Chicago non-stop service from March 31 to Oct. 25 this year due to ongoing challenges with the availability of serviceable Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 engines.
The airline added that it does not expect an impact to its full-year results as it plans to re-accommodate most of the impacted customers to alternative services.
"Air New Zealand continues to be impacted by challenges with availability of Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 engines ... we will now have up to three aircraft unavailable for an extended period," the company's Chief Customer and Sales Officer Leanne Geraghty said.
The engines are used in Air New Zealand's Boeing 787 aircraft.
Rolls-Royce has been unable to provide the company with spare or replacement engines, leading to a reduction in the amount of flying Air New Zealand can deliver via its 787 fleet, the carrier said.
The airline's fiscal 2024 earnings before taxation forecast is in the range of NZ$200 million ($123.3 million) to NZ$240 million, lower than the NZ$574 million reported in fiscal 2023.
($1 = 1.6221 New Zealand dollars)
(Reporting by Ayushman Ojha in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta)
