Global InformationList of Air New Zealand accidents and incidents information
Air New Zealand and its subsidiaries have been involved in several incidents and accidents, including four hull loss accidents.
| Flight | Date | Aircraft | Location | Description | Injuries | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | Uninjured | |||||
| ZK-NZB | 4 July 1966 | Douglas DC-8-52 | Auckland Airport, New Zealand | A Douglas DC-8-52 with the registration ZK-NZB crashed at Auckland International Airport shortly after taking off on a training flight, killing the pilot and flight engineer of the five person crew (no passengers were on board). The crew had simulated a failure of the No. 4 engine (the outer engine on the right wing) by bringing the cockpit power control lever to the idle position but inadvertently selected reverse thrust, which sent the aircraft out of control.[1][2][3] | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| TE103 | 22 December 1978 | McDonnell Douglas DC-10 | Pacific Ocean | A light aircraft became lost over the Pacific and the crew of a McDonnell Douglas DC-10 operating as Air New Zealand Flight 103 was asked to search for it. They successfully found it using a technical navigation method, with the help of an oil rig under tow. The captain then released a thin stream of fuel out of the DC-10's fuel dump tube creating a ten-mile-long vapour trail in the direction of Norfolk Island for the light aircraft to follow. | 0 | 0 | 0 | All |
| NZ4374 | 17 February 1979 | Fokker F27 Friendship | Auckland, New Zealand | A Fokker Friendship registered ZK-NFC, crashed into Manukau Harbour while on final approach. One of the crew and one company staff member were killed.[4] | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| TE901 | 28 November 1979 | McDonnell Douglas DC-10 | Mount Erebus, Antarctica | A McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30 on a sightseeing flight over Antarctica, flew into Mount Erebus on Ross Island, killing all 257 people on board. An unannounced change in flight path coordinates by the airline's navigational division the morning of the accident, combined with unique Antarctic weather and conditions, resulted in the aircraft crashing into Mount Erebus when the flight crew thought they were safely flying down McMurdo Sound. The crash and subsequent inquiry resulted in major changes in Air New Zealand's management. | 257 (all) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| TE24 | 19 May 1987 | Boeing 747-200 | Nadi International Airport, Fiji | During the first of Fiji's coups d'état that year, Air New Zealand Flight 24, flying from Tokyo Narita to Auckland via Nadi, was hijacked at Nadi International Airport. An aircraft refueller entered the Boeing 747-200's cockpit and held the captain, first officer and flight engineer hostage for six hours, before the flight engineer managed to distract the hijacker and hit him over the head with a bottle of duty-free whisky. All 105 passengers and 24 crew (including the three hostages) on board were uninjured. Air New Zealand subsequently suspended all of its services to/through Nadi for seven months.[5][6] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 139 |
| NZ2279 | 8 February 2008 | British Aerospace Jetstream | Christchurch International Airport, New Zealand | A woman attempted to hijack Air New Zealand Flight 2279 from Blenheim to Christchurch. The woman stated she had a bomb on board. Both pilots and one passenger suffered stab injuries. The aircraft landed safely and the woman was arrested. There were no injuries to the other passengers on board.[7][8] | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6 |
| X4888T | 27 November 2008 | Airbus A320-232 | Mediterranean Sea near France | The aircraft crashed into the Mediterranean Sea near Canet-en-Roussillon on the French coast. The aircraft was an Air New Zealand-owned Airbus A320 leased to XL Airways Germany registered D-AXLA (formerly ZK-OJL), and was undertaking a technical flight immediately prior to a scheduled handover back to Air New Zealand. At the time of the accident, the aircraft was painted in Air New Zealand livery. Seven people — two Germans (the pilot and co-pilot from XL Airways) and five New Zealanders (one pilot, three aircraft engineers and one member of the Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand) – were killed.[9] | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total Serious Injuries & Deaths: 276
Total Deaths: 268
- ^ Cranston, Mark (April 2006). "Air New Zealand DC-8 Digest". Simviation Historic Jetliners Group. Archived from the original on 9 April 2008. Retrieved 17 September 2007.
- ^ "ASN Aircraft accident description Douglas DC-8-52 ZK-NZB – Auckland International Airport (AKL)". Aviation Safety Network. 27 February 2005. Retrieved 18 September 2007.
- ^ "Nevada State Journal Archives, Jul 6, 1966, p. 19". 6 July 1966.
- ^ "ASN Aircraft accident Fokker F-27 Friendship 500 ZK-NFC Manukau Harbour". Aviation Safety Network. 27 February 2005.
- ^ "Air New Zealand History" (PDF). Air New Zealand. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 June 2007. Retrieved 28 February 2007.
- ^ "1987: Attempted hijacking in Fiji foiled – 19 May – Today in History". Ministry for Culture and Heritage. 14 November 2013. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
- ^ Booker, Jarrod (8 February 2008). "Witness: Airport drama 'like a Bruce Willis movie'". The New Zealand Herald.
- ^ Booker, Jarrod; Gay, Edward (8 February 2008). "Police identify woman who attacked pilots on flight". The New Zealand Herald.
- ^ "Air New Zealand A320 crashes in France". NZ History. 18 September 2020.