Cancelled flight to city frustrating

Wanaka family Luke Facer (17), Nina Lunn and Julian Facer, arrive at Dunedin International...
Wanaka family Luke Facer (17), Nina Lunn and Julian Facer, arrive at Dunedin International Airport yesterday, after having to spend an extra night in Auckland due to a mechanical problem in a Jetstar plane. Photo by Linda Robertson.
Dunedin-bound Jetstar passengers say they are disappointed at having to spend an extra night in Auckland after a mechanical problem in a plane caused them major delays.

Flight JQ7243 from Auckland to Dunedin, which should have left Auckland at 5.45pm on Saturday, was cancelled about three hours later when engineers were unable to repair a corrosion patch in a cargo door light in time for the plane to arrive at Dunedin International Airport while the control tower was still manned.

Though some passengers in Auckland said they were told by Jetstar it had lined up another plane, that aircraft could not take off because the Dunedin control tower would have been unmanned at the time the plane would have been due there.

A Jetstar spokeswoman yesterday said it had been granted an extension to land in Dunedin up to 11.15pm, but that was not late enough, and ''an alternative option could not be explored in the time frame'' to deal with the problem, which was unforeseen.

When the service was cancelled Jetstar paid for people's transfers, a free move to another service, or a refund. Passengers requiring accommodation were put up in a hotel and given food vouchers. An extra flight was put on and arrived in Dunedin at noon yesterday.

''Jetstar sincerely apologises for the cancellation,'' the spokeswoman said.

Passenger Jen Allaway, of Dunedin, said her son Peter (1) was ''beside himself'' by the time they got to a friend's place in Auckland on Saturday night, after waiting more than four hours at the airport. She said it had been very inconvenient, despite everyone doing their best to resolve issues.

Nina Facer, of Wanaka, was less complimentary, saying it had been an exceptionally frustrating experience.

To top if off there was just one person on the Jetstar desk to organise everyone's new flight plans and process people for hotel vouchers, plus the shuttle bus to the hotel only ran every 30 minutes.

She, husband Julian Facer and son Luke got to the hotel about 9.50pm, having been near the front of the queue and said other passengers likely faced much longer delays.

''They didn't seem to have much of a plan, or enough staff on the ground.''

They would probably fly Jetstar again, but hoped the company would get better contingency plans in place.

Steve Sharp, of Dunedin, said he drove out to drop off family for the returning Auckland-bound flight on Saturday and because of the delay went home after checking bags in, but had to return for the bags later that night, and then go back again to the airport yesterday, which had been ''hugely inconvenient''.

Delayed passenger Allen Anderson, of Dunedin, said he was a supporter of Jetstar and its competitive fares.

A Dunedin International Airport spokeswoman said control tower operators, like pilots, could, for safety reasons, only work so many hours within a period.

Had the operator on that night stayed any later, it would have affected flights the next day.

-debbie.porteous@odt.co.nz

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