Air NZ chief says engine dramas to hamper flights for years

Air New Zealand CEO Greg Foran said the engine problems that have grounded a significant number of the airline’s jets will hamper operations for another two years. Four of Air New Zealand’s 14 Boeing Co. 787s currently can’t fly because engines from Rolls-Royce Holdings Plc aren’t available, Foran said in a Bloomberg Television interview Thursday. Six of the airline’s 17 Airbus SE A321s are grounded while the airline works with engine-maker Pratt & Whitney on extra maintenance requirements, he said. The operational impact “will be with us for a couple of years,” Foran said. The number of planes out of service is expected to gradually decline over that period, he said. The fallout suggests there’s no quick fix to the supply-chain snarls that have dogged aviation since the pandemic. Air New Zealand has a fleet of 110 aircraft, of which 58 are Airbus and Boeing jets.<br/>