Air New Zealand has confirmed to chrislynchmedia.com that it has “modified flight paths where necessary” in response to Australian concerns over Chinese naval vessels conducting live-fire military drills 340 nautical miles southeast of Sydney, in international waters.
This follows reports that an Emirates flight from Sydney to Christchurch was directly warned by the Chinese military to avoid specific airspace on Friday morning.
An Emirates spokesperson told chrislynchmedia.com, “Emirates uses advanced flight planning systems that optimise each route, carefully considering several factors to ensure a safe and smooth journey.
“Our crew also have rigorous protocols to maintain vigilance during operations. When a change in airspace activity was detected, the flight deck crew on EK 412 (21 February) made a slight routing deviation as per standard industry protocol and in conjunction with air traffic control, to maintain optimal safety margins.”
New Zealand Civil Aviation Authority Deputy Chief Executive of Aviation Security and Infrastructure, Mike Hill, told chrislynchmedia.com, “The Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand is aware of the advice issued by Airservices Australia. If there is a known issue in the New Zealand Flight Information Region (FIR), advice would likely be issued via NOTAM.”
A Notice to Airmen (NOTAM), also known as Notice to Air Mission (FAA definition), is a notice containing information concerning the establishment, condition, or change in any aeronautical facility, service, procedure, or hazard, the timely knowledge of which is essential to personnel concerned with flight operations. NOTAMs in New Zealand are available through https://www.ifis.airways.co.nz/.”
Defence Minister Judith Collins told chrislynchmedia.com, “We are aware of the notification of a possible live firing activity by the Chinese Task Group currently off the coast of Australia. However, there has been no confirmation this has happened.
“Australia and New Zealand are working closely together to monitor the Task Group and gather information on today’s notification. Like Australia, our primary concern is the safety of our people, vessels, and aircraft. There is no ongoing danger to New Zealand.”
