Air New Zealand has grounded a fleet of 18 aircraft after hairline cracks were found on a plane's tail area during a routine maintenance inspection. Engineers inspecting the Beech 1900Ds, which were operated by subsidiary Eagle Air, have already examined four aircraft and found three were affected. Eagle Air general manager Carrie Hurihanganui said Eagle Air services were cancelled this afternoon as a precautionary measure and alternative arrangements would be made for the about 800 customers affected. "We apologise to customers for the inevitable inconvenience caused by undertaking a full check of our fleet. However, the safety of our customers, our staff and our aircraft is paramount and non-negotiable for the airline," she said. Customers were advised to check flight arrivals and departures for the most up to date schedules. The Beech 1900D aircraft have been in service with Eagle Air since October 2001 and have an average age of 10.5 years. The 19-seat aircraft operate to 20 destinations around New Zealand.
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| Coming home to the nest... heaps of Beech 1900s arriving at Hamilton to have their tails checked |
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Yeah, I was affected by this today. My flight from Gisborne to Auckland was cancelled due to the Tongariro Eruption. So then I travelled over to Whakatane. I managed to fluke a flight to AKL. When we arrived, I found my flight to Taupo was cancelled. I though this was due to ash. Suddenly I realised that all the 2000 series flights (eagles 1900ds) were cancelled. I managed to get a flight down to Tauranga and a rental car to travel down to Taupo. Not a good day to travel!!!
ReplyDeletethe days of the beech 1900 are numbered
ReplyDeleteBring back the Metroliners (or maybe Saabs 340's!!!)
ReplyDeleteI liked the 340s. The 1900s have an average life of 10.5 years. Eagle aquired them in 2001. Meaning Eagles 1900Ds are a year over their average life. I think we maybe seeing more of Air Nationals Jetstreams in our skys
ReplyDeleteFor the life of me I can't remember how many the 340 seated, 30 seats????. I also liked the 340, great aircraft. Maybe that would be an option for Eagle. I hated the metroliner, awful plane. Maybe its getting to the stage where Eagle needs to explore other options. There are not many aircraft that fit the 19 seat market. Theres the Metroliner, the 1900, the Jetstreams. I say bring back the Saabs. I reckon thiers routes that have outgrown the 1900D, but are busy enough to Warrant the Q300. Taupo, Wanganui and Whangarei are busy routes.
ReplyDeleteThe Saab is now well and truly out of production, but I would suggest the Embraer Brasilia. Acccording to Wikipedia (the source of all knowledge)it is still available for one-off orders, as it shares much of the production equipment with the ERJ-145 family, which is still produced (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Embraer_EMB_120_Brasilia). The fact they are still flying in the US 25 years on is an indication they are good robust plane. I would guess most routes could step up to a 30 seater and just some of the smaller centres needing the 1900
ReplyDeleteYeah I would agree with that Steve. I travelled on one of those Embraers in the US, a year ago. I thought it was nice and quiet. Legroom pretty average, but better than the 1900D. The Eagle flights out of Taupo, Wanganui and Whangarei ive been on, have been really full. On the other hand, the Q300 flights ive been on out of Gisborne and Hokitika only have around 30-40 people on them
ReplyDeleteThere is a big gap between the 19-seat Beech and 50-seat Q300. Air NZ have shown they can grow the domestic market but going from a 19 seater to 50 seater is a BIG ask for the provinces. The big problem is nothing in between unless the likes of the Brasilia line is opened up again. Is this just an NZ problem?
ReplyDeleteGee this post has gathered some comments. I pretty much agree with every comment. I live in Taupo and commute to Wellington 3 times a week, and Auckland the other two. The 1900D flights are always packed, rarely a seat left. But I dont feel there is enough demand to warrant Q300 flights. A mid sized aircraft like the Embraer. As Steve L said, the fact they are still flying, years on, proves they are a reliable aircraft. I flew on one in Auzzie a few years back. I liked them. The new ATRs arrive in a couple of months. I wonder how this will alter NZs aviation scene. I know Tauranga is going to start recieving ATR 72-500 flights to and from Auckland.
ReplyDelete