Editing Air New Zealand (section)

==Controversies==
===Outsourcing maintenance===
On 19 October 2005, Air New Zealand proposed outsourcing most of its heavy maintenance on its long-haul aircraft and engines, which would result in about 600 job losses, mostly in Auckland.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Zealand |first=Air New |title=Air NZ proposes outsourcing engineering services {{!}} Scoop News |url=https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0510/S00355/air-nz-proposes-outsourcing-engineering-services.htm |access-date=2023-06-08 |website=www.scoop.co.nz |language=en}}</ref> Air New Zealand said that there were larger maintenance providers that could provide maintenance work more cheaply due to their large scale. The proposal was estimated to save $48 million over five years and came after many attempts to attract contracts to service other airlines' longhaul aircraft.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Zealand |first=Air New |title=Air NZ To Outsource Wide Body Heavy Maintenance {{!}} Scoop News |url=https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0602/S00260/air-nz-to-outsource-wide-body-heavy-maintenance.htm |access-date=2023-06-08 |website=www.scoop.co.nz |language=en}}</ref>

Eventually, a union proposal to save some of the remaining jobs was accepted. The proposal included shift and pay changes (most of them pay cuts) which would allow about 300 engineers in Auckland to keep their jobs. 200 were made redundant or resigned.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=1&ObjectID=10369829|title=Air NZ engineers accept deal|newspaper=[[The New Zealand Herald]]|date=24 February 2006}}</ref>

===Minor seating policy===
{{Main|Airline sex discrimination policy controversy}}
In November 2005, it was revealed that Air New Zealand (along with Qantas and [[British Airways]]) had a policy of not seating adult male passengers next to unaccompanied children. The policy came to light following an incident in 2004 when a man who was seated next to a young boy on a Qantas flight in New Zealand was asked to change seats with a female passenger. A steward informed him that "it was the airline's policy that only women were allowed to sit next to unaccompanied children". Air New Zealand later said it had a similar policy to Qantas.<ref>{{Cite news| title=Airline Bars Men From Lone Children| publisher=peterellis.org.nz| date=29 November 2009| url=http://www.peterellis.org.nz/MoralPanic/Airline/2005-1129_NewstalkZB_AirlineBars.htm| access-date=31 July 2010}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news| last= Thomson| first=Ainsley| title=Ban on men sitting next to children |work=[[The New Zealand Herald]] | date=29 November 2005| url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&ObjectID=10357510| access-date=31 July 2010}}</ref>

===Qantas code-share===
On 12 April 2006, Air New Zealand and Qantas announced that they had signed a code-share agreement for their trans-Tasman routes and would file for authorisation from the [[New Zealand Ministry of Transport]]<ref>[http://www.transport.govt.nz/international-air-carriage-competition/ International air carriage competition] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080429170219/http://www.transport.govt.nz/international-air-carriage-competition/ |date=29 April 2008 }}</ref> and the [[Australian Competition & Consumer Commission]] (ACCC).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.accc.gov.au/content/index.phtml/itemId/744922/fromItemId/278039 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070508202530/http://www.accc.gov.au/content/index.phtml/itemId/744922/fromItemId/278039 |url-status=dead |archive-date=8 May 2007 |title=Qantas Airways Ltd & Air New Zealand Ltd&nbsp;– Authorisations |publisher=[[Australian Competition & Consumer Commission]]|access-date=30 June 2013 }}</ref> The airlines maintained that they were making losses on Tasman routes due to too many empty seats, and that a codeshare would return the routes to profitability. Critics, particularly [[Wellington Airport|Wellington]], [[Christchurch Airport|Christchurch]] and [[Melbourne Airport]]s, argued that the codeshare flights would lead to reduced passenger choice and higher airfares, and that airports such as Auckland and [[Sydney Airport|Sydney]] would benefit immensely through economic activity services would bring.

On 15 November 2006 Air New Zealand announced it was withdrawing its application after a draft decision by the ACCC to not approve the code-sharing agreement.

On 31 May 2018 Qantas and Air New Zealand announced that "seamless air travel" would be available to their customers through a new code-sharing agreement. The code-share took effect in October 2018.<ref>{{Cite web |date=1 June 2018 |title=Qantas, Air NZ team up for codeshare |url=https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/qantas-air-nz-team-up-for-codeshare/ihcyhkney |access-date=2023-03-11 |website=SBS News |language=en}}</ref>

===Aiding Saudi military===

In February 2021, it was reported that Air New Zealand's business unit Gas Turbines had repaired two engines and one power turbine module from vessels belonging to the [[Royal Saudi Navy]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Air NZ apologises after revelations it helped Saudi Arabian military |url=https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/436026/air-nz-apologises-after-revelations-it-helped-saudi-arabian-military |access-date=17 November 2022 |publisher=[[Radio New Zealand]] |date=8 February 2021}}</ref> Green Party human rights spokesperson [[Golriz Ghahraman]] accused Air New Zealand for being an accomplice to the [[Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen]]. New Zealand Prime Minister [[Jacinda Ardern]] subsequently ordered the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade to conduct an investigation into Air New Zealand's involvement.<ref>{{cite news |last1=de Jong |first1=Eleanor |title=Ardern orders inquiry into Air New Zealand's work for Saudi Arabia navy |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/09/ardern-orders-inquiry-into-air-new-zealands-work-for-saudi-arabia-navy |access-date=17 November 2022 |work=[[The Guardian]] |date=9 February 2021}}</ref> The airline reportedly ceased all contractual support to the Saudi military after the matter was made public.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/the-green-party-slams-air-nz-after-saudi-arabian-military-revelations/DHUUVDXRPCPIHCG6YYX24V5SIM/|title=The Green Party slams Air NZ after Saudi Arabian military revelations|access-date=7 February 2021|work=[[The New Zealand Herald]] }}</ref>