Air New Zealand Farewells Boeing B767 from Service

After almost 32 years in service, Air New Zealand has recently operated its final service with the Boeing B767 widebody jet.  The final flight from Sydney to Auckland was operated by their sole remaining B767-300(ER) in the fleet - ZK-NCI.

For Central Queensland plane spotters, three of Air New Zealand's Boeing B767-300(ER) aircraft operated a number of charter flights in 2015 on behalf of the Singapore Armed Forces, flying between Singapore's Changi Airport and Rockhampton Airport, flying troops to participate in Exercise Wallaby.

ZK-NCI at Rockhampton Airport in 2015  (File photo)

ZK-NCK at a rain-soaked Rockhampton Airport in 2015  (File photo)

ZK-NCL at Rockhampton Airport in 2015  (File photo)

Air New Zealand has been progressively replacing its B767s with Boeing B787-9s, which feature the airline’s latest cabin products and offer lower operating costs and improved fuel efficiency while carrying more passengers.  This 'changing of the guard' was clearly evident in 2016 when the sleek B787-9 aircraft operated several charter flights into Rockhampton Airport during Exercise Wallaby.

B787-9 ZK-NZI was the first ever to touch down at Rockhampton Airport in 2016  (File photo)

Air New Zealand presently operates nine B787-9s, with a further four due for delivery between now and the end of 2018.

Further, it gives the New Zealand flag carrier a simplified fleet structure with three jet aircraft types – narrowbody Airbus A320s and widebody Boeing B787-9s and B777-200ER/300ERs. Air New Zealand farewelled the Boeing B747 in September 2014 - see Blog post HERE.

Air New Zealand took delivery of its first Boeing B767 in September 1985 and has flown both the -200 and -300 variant of the type. The final active B767-300ER ZK-NCI joined the fleet in November 1994, meaning it has had nearly 23 years with the airline.

B767-219(ER) ZK-NBA at Brisbane in 2001  (File photo)

B767-319(ER) ZK-NCI in old colours at Sydney in 1998  (File photo)

In Australia, Qantas also farewelled the Boeing B767 in December 2014 after a 29-year career operating 927,000 flights that carried nearly 168 million passengers.