Air NZ’s new 777 gets good review

Published 9:00 pm Wednesday, November 9, 2005

I didn’t meet New Zealand Herald writer Derek Chang last month, when Air New Zealand execs came to Everett to pick up the airline’s new 777-300ER http://www.heraldnet.com/stories/05/10/28/100bus_boeing001.cfm , but apparently he was on board the flight back to Auckland — and he was impressed. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/7/story.cfm?c_id=7&ObjectID=10353747

Key Quote: “Indeed, I can’t think of anything else you could possibly want from an airline passenger seat. There’s more than enough to reduce the most demanding traveller to the role of kid in a candy store.”

I took a quick peek inside the plane and I will concur — that first class section was gorgeous. Lots of gray leather.

Sadly, I spent most of my time trying to corner Steven Udvar-Hazy to ask whether his ILFC was in fact the buyer of those 20 787s Boeing recently listed as going to an unnamed customer. (His response — a wink and a grin and “I don’t know anything about it.”) So I didn’t get to stretch out in one of those leather seats.

Speaking of Air EnZed, The Dominion Post reports http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3472098a13,00.html that the airline is considering a cabin overhaul on its fleet of 767s, which are being retired as the airline phases in its new 777s.

Key Quote: “The airline has ordered eight 777-200ERs to replace four leased 767s over the next year. The remaining five 234-seat 767s, all owned by Air New Zealand, will remain in the fleet till at least 2010.”