Air New Zealand grounds flights to Vietnam

More than 13,700 Dreamliners are having engine problems that are being fixed at Singapore, the carrier has said.

It is being forced to stop flights to Vietnam next year so as to prevent further disruption, Radio New Zealand reported.

In addition, the airline will cut the frequency of its flights to Argentina and Taipei, and suspend services to Haneda, Tokyo.

According to an article published on September 20 by Air Transport World, a monthly magazine, experts believe that rising air pollution in Asian cities has caused the engine issues that have affected a large portion of the Boeing 787 fleet, which is powered by Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 engines.

The magazine also reported that dozens of 787s from multiple airlines including Air New Zealand, Air China, British Airways, and Virgin Atlantic, have been sitting engineless at airports.

American City Business Journal, a metropolitan business newsweekly in the US, published an article last month stating that Rolls-Royce has spent more than US$721 million to fix Trent 1000 engine issues.

Christopher Luxon, CEO of Air New Zealand, has said that he will meet Rolls-Royce management in London next week to seek reassurances about fixing the engines.