CRISTCHURCH— Former Air New Zealand (NZ) chief executive Rob Fyfe has criticised Prime Minister Christopher Luxon for publicly attacking the airline after it reported a NZ$242 million net loss for the 2026 financial year.
The carrier, headquartered in Auckland (AKL), has attributed the result to higher fuel prices, prolonged engine shortages, maintenance expenses and rising aviation system costs.
Fyfe, who led Air New Zealand from 2005 to 2012, said it was inappropriate for a former chief executive to publicly criticise the current management team.
His comments followed Luxon’s description of the airline’s financial performance as “very poor” despite challenging conditions across the global aviation industry.
Fyfe Challenges Luxon
Speaking to Ryan Bridge TODAY, Fyfe said former chief executives should be cautious about commenting on the people currently running their former organisations.
He also pointed out that some of the engine decisions now creating problems were made during his or Luxon’s tenure.
Fyfe said he would therefore be “the last one” to criticise the airline over the engine problems. Luxon served as Air New Zealand chief executive from 2013 until 2019, before entering politics and eventually becoming New Zealand’s prime minister.
The comments highlight the unusual position of Luxon, who is now commenting on the performance of a company he once managed while the New Zealand Government remains its majority shareholder.
Air New Zealand Reports Loss
Air New Zealand reported a NZ$336 million loss before tax for the financial year ended June 30, compared with a NZ$164 million profit in the previous year.
Its net loss reached NZ$242 million, although total revenue increased 3.9% to NZ$7 billion and passenger revenue rose 4.8% to NZ$6.1 billion.
The airline estimated that engine availability problems involving Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 and Pratt & Whitney PW1100 engines affected the result by approximately NZ$190 million.
The impact included lost capacity, additional leasing and engine costs, lower fleet utilisation and operational inefficiencies.
Higher fuel costs also placed significant pressure on the carrier, with Air New Zealand estimating that the Middle East conflict added NZ$205 million to fuel costs after hedging.
Maintenance expenses increased by NZ$139 million, excluding foreign exchange effects, during what the airline described as a peak aircraft maintenance year.
Engine Decisions Resurface
The dispute has also revived scrutiny of earlier fleet decisions. Air New Zealand selected Pratt & Whitney PW1100G-JM engines for its Airbus narrowbody aircraft in 2015, when Luxon was chief executive, while its Boeing 787 fleet has faced longstanding issues with Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 engines.
The Trent 1000 decision dates back to the mid-2000s and was reaffirmed in 2009, when Fyfe was chief executive. The prolonged engine problems have since restricted aircraft availability and increased costs for the airline.
Current chief executive Nikhil Ravishankar has acknowledged the financial result was poor but has highlighted improving operational performance as more aircraft return to service, the New Zealand Herald reported.
Air New Zealand expects engine-related disruption to ease significantly in 2027, with no more than one widebody and two narrowbody aircraft expected to remain grounded because of the multi-year issues.
Luxon’s office has defended his criticism, saying he was speaking on behalf of taxpayers because the government owns a majority stake in Air New Zealand.
Former Labour leader Phil Goff, however, also criticised the prime minister’s remarks, arguing that publicly damaging confidence in the national carrier was unhelpful.
Stay tuned with us. Further, follow us on social media for the latest updates.
Join us on Telegram Group for the Latest Aviation Updates. Subsequently, follow us on Google News
