Kiwi Pilots Reassure Air Travellers, Need For Thorough Investigation
NZALPA President Andrew McKeen, also a 787 Pilot, said that the Association's thoughts were with the families and loved ones of the passengers and crew.
Through IFALPA, the pilot community worldwide has reached out to their colleagues at the Airline Pilots' Association of India to offer any support necessary.
President McKeen said the most important thing was to avoid speculation about the cause or causes of the accident and allow the investigation process to take its course. Conclusions and safety recommendations will be identified by the appropriate investigative bodies. Any lessons learned will be shared and changes made if necessary.
'In NZALPA's 80 years of representing professional pilots in New Zealand, we have found that taking the time to gather all facts and analyse all relevant information has assisted aviation in becoming the safest form of transportation in the world,' President McKeen says.
'New Zealand airlines also operate Boeing 787s but we remind passengers that thousands of flights occur daily without incident and there is no immediate cause for concern.
'NZALPA's pilots and air traffic controllers first priority is, and always will be, the safety of our members and the travelling public,' says President McKeen.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Otago Daily Times
26-06-2025
- Otago Daily Times
Flying anxiety peaking in India after fatal crash
Retired Air Force officer Dinesh K. has seen a surge in demand for his $500 therapy course to help people overcome their fear of flying since Air India flight 171 crashed moments after take-off from Ahmedabad two weeks ago. Dinesh uses a combination of flight simulation and counselling at his Cockpit Vista centre for "fear of flying solutions" in Bengaluru, the only one in India. The centre has received more than 100 enquiries since the disaster, compared to a previous average of about ten a month. "Fear of flying is typically to do with things happening on an aeroplane - the sounds, motion, vibrations ... exposure therapy is the only solution," Dinesh, 55, said during a tour of the facility where he demonstrated how cockpit controls relate to movements that often worry passengers. The centre has a simulator for a Boeing and Cessna plane to help people experience how landings and takeoffs appear from the cockpit and understand that not every vibration or sound during a flight signals danger. WhatsApp messages Dinesh received, and shared with Reuters, showed individuals complaining about "losing confidence" after the crash while others said it was "too hard on the brain". A chilling 59-second CCTV clip showing the crash of the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, which killed 260 people, has been widely shared on social media and TV channels since the June 12 accident, which aviation and mental health experts said had led to an unusually high number of counselling requests. Some travellers are becoming more choosy in selecting their airline and aircraft - Boeing or Airbus - while others are so anxious they are taking more drastic steps by rescheduling or cancelling their air travel plans altogether. "I am filtering on the basis of not having to fly a Boeing ... I'm bloody terrified currently, and I don't want to get back on a flight," said London-based Indian marketing consultant Nidhi Bhatia, 25, who flew to Mumbai in an Air India Boeing 777 plane a day before the Ahmedabad crash. Unlike India, Western countries have many more formal setups to help people tackle their fear of flying, in its most intense form known as aerophobia, as fatal crashes often spike worries among travellers across the world. Days after an American Airlines plane collided with a helicopter in Washington, killing more than 60 people, a survey of 1000 U.S. consumers by research firm Prodege found 55% of travellers had higher anxiety, while 38% had reconsidered or cancelled travel plans. Google Trends data shows searches for the term "flying fear" in India hit "peak popularity" a day after the Air India crash, and the phrase was still being widely searched. 'DEBILITATING ANXIETY' Flying is typically seen as a safe mode of transport, and crashes during takeoff are especially rare. The International Civil Aviation Organization said there were 1.87 accidents per million departures in 2023, its most recent annual air safety report. Of the nine hull loss accidents without fatalities recorded in 2024, only two occurred on take off, according to Airbus' website. The airport CCTV recording from Ahmedabad shows the Air India plane rose to a height of 198.12m after it took off, but suddenly lost altitude, crashing in a fireball into a nearby building -- all within 60 seconds. The disturbing footage was a key cause of the panic among Indian travellers, five mental health experts said. People were seeking help because they had developed insomnia or become obsessed with flight updates, they said. Others were scared of letting their loved ones travel on planes, complaining of "debilitating anxiety" for their relatives in transit "to an extent where they have been unable to focus on their daily chores" because they are constantly checking messages to see if they have landed, said psychologist Pankti Gohel. In Bengaluru, the $500 Cockpit Vista course is spread over 14 hours and led by Dinesh, who oversaw ground operations during the undeclared 1999 Kargil war between India and Pakistan and retired as an Air Force wing commander in 2014. He also offers to accompany worried clients on the first flights they take after completing the course. Since the crash, many travellers fear travelling with Air India and are seeking alternative airlines, according to Jaya Tours, a mid-sized booking agency in Mumbai. Taken over by the Tata Group from the Indian government in 2022, Air India continues to face criticism for poor service and an outdated fleet. This year, the airline was also warned about flying three Airbus planes which lacked mandatory inspection checks on escape slides. The Indian Association of Tour Operators, which represents more than 1600 agents, said overall flight bookings dropped by 15-20% soon after the Air India crash, while 30-40% of booked tickets were also cancelled. "We are getting very unusual questions about aircraft type. Earlier passengers didn't really care about what kind of aircraft it is," said the group's president, Ravi Gosain. "People don't want to hear about Dreamliners."
RNZ News
24-06-2025
- RNZ News
What happens if your travel plans are disrupted by airspace closures?
Photo: 123RF Travellers who have had their plans disrupted by airspace closures should have their flights rescheduled or refunded, but probably won't receive any compensation. Airlines are avoiding large parts of the Middle East due to attacks from the United States, Israel and Iran. Qatar closed its airspace when Iran launched a missile attack on US bases there and it was reported that flights heading for Dubai turned around. Air India posted on X that it was ceasing all operations in the Middle East and flights from North America to India were being sent back. Carter Capner Law director Peter Carter said airlines were entitled to make changes to their flight routes and destinations for safety and operational reasons. "There is no compensation payable as a result of a diversion or delayed arrival in those circumstances. "An airline is obliged to provide accommodation at the place to which the flight was diverted but the standard of accommodation and the type of other expenses it will cover - such as meals - is specified in the ticket terms. "Passengers delayed on flights to the EU are entitled to compensation if they are on an EU airline but it is not required to pay if the delay is as a result of 'extraordinary' circumstances. War and closure of air space is certainly an 'extraordinary' circumstance." Vanessa Pratley, an investigative writer at Consumer NZ, said people whose travel was disrupted would probably be entitled to a refund or credit, if a flight was cancelled or a rescheduled flight time didn't suit. "However, because the situation is unavoidable and outside of airlines' control, much like bad weather, passengers likely won't be entitled to any further compensation for loss or damage caused by the delay, such as an extra night of accommodation. What you're entitled to will vary based on the airline and its conditions of carriage." Karen Stevens, Insurance and Financial Services Ombudsman, said if people whose flights were disrupted missed other prebooked accommodation or side trips, they could claim on their travel insurance. But they might find that their policy had an exclusion that meant they could not claim for loss that was due to war. "It would depend on how war was defined in the particular policy." Rebecca Styles, Consumer's insurance expert, agreed travel insurance might not help. "Insurers typically exclude the risk of war and violence, civil unrest, and if the government has issued a 'do not travel' directive to a particular location. So, if you haven't bought insurance before the directive was issued it's highly unlikely you'll be able to get it. At the moment, the UAE has a 'exercise increased caution' rather than a flat 'do not travel'. Yet, in the first instance, it's up to the airline to reschedule/reroute flights."
NZ Herald
16-06-2025
- NZ Herald
Air India crash: What do we know about the Boeing 787 Dreamliner involved? Expert Q&A
Before the Air India crash on June 12, the Boeing 787 Dreamliner had a good safety record and had been flying for many years without significant problems. Photo / Getty Images An Air India plane bound for London Gatwick Airport crashed shortly after take-off on June 12 in Ahmedabad, western India. Flight AI171 was carrying 242 people, including 169 Indian nationals, 53 Britons, seven Portuguese and one Canadian.
