Tuesday, June 18, 2024 In an unexpected turn of events, Air New Zealand’s CEO Greg Foran demonstrated remarkable leadership and customer service by diverting a Boeing 787 Dreamliner to Brisbane. The decision arose from a crisis involving a government jet carrying Foran and a delegation of business and government representatives from Auckland to Tokyo for a trade summit. During a refueling stop in Papua New Guinea, the jet encountered mechanical issues due to two blown fuses, which restricted it from flying at high altitudes.
This left the delegation stranded. While the Prime Minister managed to continue his journey via commercial flights, the rest of the group faced delays. Eventually, the government jet was cleared to fly at a lower altitude to Brisbane.
It was there that Foran made an unusual request: divert Air New Zealand flight NZ99, en route from Auckland to Tokyo, to Brisbane to pick up the stranded delegation. Once the Dreamliner, registered as ZK-NZJ, landed in Brisbane, Foran used the public address system to apologize to the passengers for the unscheduled stop. In a gesture of goodwill and to lighten the mood, Foran, along with airline chairperson Dame Therese Walsh, assisted the crew in serving drinks to passengers.
This act of service was reminiscent of Foran’s undercover stint in 2021 when he served food and drinks on an Air NZ flight without revealing his identity. The diversion added just over two hours to the scheduled arrival time in Tokyo. Despite this .