\u201cWe understand they\u2019re looking at the whole business and that is a big exercise,\u201d Moore said.<\/p>\n
Airports and the airline are often at loggerheads over landing fees but Moore said Air New Zealand was crucial for airports.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur interests are in them succeeding.\u201d<\/p>\n
She suggested the airline\u2019s 51-49 ownership structure effectively gave it a dual mandate.<\/p>\n
\u201cAir New Zealand has to balance the needs of a commercial entity and it also has the public good role.<\/p>\n
\u201cObviously, they\u2019re a listed company, so they have all the disciplines of a listed company,\u201d Moore said.<\/p>\n
And she said the Government\u2019s role as the major shareholder gave it a role in setting expectations.<\/p>\n
She said the Government likely considered Air NZ had to function as a listed company and needed some time to work through its reset.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe challenge is, the only way forward for them is growth.\u201d<\/p>\n
Moore said Qantas\u2019 first-half result yesterday<\/a> showed growth across virtually all parts of its business.<\/p>\n Qantas said it would be getting one new aircraft about every three weeks on average this financial year.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Air NZ later this year will get two new GE-powered Boeing 787s.<\/p>\n In its latest result, Air NZ said its fleet capacity increased only 0.3% in a year because of aircraft availability issues affecting Airbus A321\/A320neos and Boeing 787s.<\/p>\n It also cited sluggish domestic demand, rising aviation system costs and a weaker New Zealand dollar for its poor performance.<\/p>\n Air New Zealand\u2019s share price yesterday fell<\/a> 1.74% or 1c to 56c.<\/p>\n And the company\u2019s result quickly became a political issue.<\/p>\n Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour called for the Government to sell its 51% share<\/a>.<\/p>\n But coalition partner National has ruled that out, and the third member of the coalition, New Zealand First, rubbished the idea.<\/p>\n Seymour also criticised \u201ccrazy\u201d airfares, saying it was pointless having taxpayer money tied up with Air NZ if it was not providing an affordable service.<\/p>\n He slammed the airline\u2019s culture as \u201cwoke\u201d and, according to RNZ, he added: \u201cWhat they can\u2019t seem to do is take off and land on time.\u201d<\/p>\n Aviation analytics data company Cirium said Air NZ was on time more often than any other Asia-Pacific airline last year<\/a> except for Philippine Airlines. <\/p>\n Cirium Asia editor Ellis Taylor said Air NZ had delivered a significant improvement despite grappling with fleet and engine maintenance issues.<\/p>\n Ministry of Transport (MoT) data for December 2025 showed the airline\u2019s domestic on-time performance was 78.6% for departures and 80.5% for arrivals.<\/p>\n The MoT said an updated Air New Zealand schedule supported improved reliability across the network during a high-demand period.<\/p>\n The ministry said for domestic jet routes, Air NZ had 81% on-time departures compared to Jetstar at 68% that month.<\/p>\n Air NZ had 81.9% on-time domestic jet arrivals, compared to 69.5% for Jetstar in December.<\/p>\n Air New Zealand\u2019s cancellation rate was 1.3% and Jetstar\u2019s 1.9% for domestic jet routes.<\/p>\n Even so, it was far from turning a profit. <\/p>\n Moore told the Herald the MoT data added a layer of transparency which was good for the country and probably drove improvements in airline punctuality.<\/p>\n She said it would be good to see the same kind of transparency around airfares. <\/p>\nAct leader David Seymour blasted the airline’s culture and called for its complete privatisation. Photo \/ Mark Mitchell<\/p>\n