A few hiccups disrupted the travel plans of a New Zealand contingent, including two Alexandra teenagers, which arrived in Gallipoli yesterday for Anzac Day commemorations. However, an Icelandic volcano was not to blame.
Dunstan High School's Danny Garry and St Hilda's Collegiate School's Laura Pedofsky travelled to Turkey on the Royal New Zealand Air Force plane to take part in ceremonies marking the 95th anniversary of the Gallipoli landings.
They were among 21 pupils who won a national competition to produce a work that illustrated the impact of World War 1 on New Zealand society.
The official contingent also includes 22 returned servicemen.
The trip by the veterans, defence force staff and school pupils was delayed by seven hours after a malfunction on their Air Force plane, The New Zealand Herald reported. It was further delayed at Penang, awaiting clearance to enter United Arab Emirates airspace.
The group was on schedule to land at Istanbul yesterday, a Ministry of Defence spokesperson said.
