Strict new FAA order forces Air NZ to juggle its fleet

Air NZ's international network faces further disruption as US regulators bring in tough new standards covering how far Dreamliners can fly from airports in the case of an engine shut down. The FAA order — seen by the Herald and about to be published online by the regulator — restricts the planes fitted with some potentially faulty Rolls-Royce engines from operating more than 140 minutes from a diversionary airport, down from 330 minutes. Air NZ is already doing more frequent checks on the "package C" engines at the centre of the FAA directive after an alert from the European regulators. The FAA airworthiness directive order threatens to be far more disruptive for operators of Dreamliners. Air New Zealand said 16 of its fleet of 27 long-haul aircraft were not Dreamliners, and would not be affected by the order and fly as normal. One of its 11 Dreamliners is fitted with newer Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 TEN engines which is not affected by the order. "By utilising our fleet flexibly we expect to continue to operate to all international destinations, although some routes will have aircraft and/or departure time changes. We apologise in advance to customers who may be inconvenienced during this time," a spokeswoman said.<br/>