The conflict in the Middle East is having a serious impact on airline operations in New Zealand, and while it’s arguably the biggest challenge for airlines currently, it’s far from the only one for carriers operating in New Zealand.
Touching first on the Middle East, Board of Airline Representatives New Zealand executive director Cath O’Brien says the war continues to be impactful, not just for airline operations, but also the cost of fuel. Airspace issues are likely to occur for some time, though O’Brien notes that airlines around the world have managed airspace closures for various different conflicts for quite a long time, like Ukraine and Russia.
“I would imagine it would just become operationally normal over time if it was to continue.”
. . . Rising Costs
The cost of fuel is likely to remain elevated for some time, she adds, and it’s not the only big cost that carriers in New Zealand are worried about.
In Aotearoa airlines pay for the entire system of aviation, everything from air traffic control to airport charges, and while O’Brien says the New Zealand Government is very mindful of any increase to levies, the challenge lies in increasing landing charges from airports, in particular Auckland and Christchurch will both set prices in 2027 for the next five-year period.
“AKL in particular has probably got something like $3 billion worth of capital costs coming down the pipe towards us, and all of that cost will go into airline landing charges… That’s a big cost that has to be swallowed by airlines operating to, from and within New Zealand.”
She says airlines have seen landing charges from AKL roughly double, and they will probably double again.
“I hope that we get some growth to kind of help us with that, because the more people that fly here the more there are to share that cost burden, but I’m not sure we’ll get as much growth as we need to get ourselves out of that challenge.”
. . . Airlines Mindful
Airlines are also impacted by the current economic condition, with O’Brien saying one of the very real challenges is the state of the general economy and how Kiwis are coping with the cost-of-living increase.
“It means New Zealanders might be a little more careful about travel,” she says. “Airlines are going to have to really work to ensure demand for travel remains, even though the economic situation is very difficult for lots of New Zealanders.”
