An Air Recent Zealand flight en path to Avarua (RAR) was forced to return to Auckland (AKL) on Thursday following a lightning strike.
Incident details
As reported by the Recent Zealand Herald, the 4-year-old Airbus A321neo (ZK-NNC), operating as flight NZ942 departed Auckland Airport at 06:22 NZST on Thursday morning. Lower than quarter-hour into the standard three-and-a-half-hour jaunt to the Cook Islands, the jet entered right into a circular pattern over Omaha Bay, remaining within the skies for under two hours, burning off excess fuel.
The aircraft eventually returned to Auckland, landing at 08:00 NZST without further incident. No passengers or crew were injured. ZK-NNC stays on the bottom at Auckland Airport, though it continues to be scheduled to operate on services to Gold Coast (OOL) and Melbourne (MEL) later this week.
Photo: Airbus
In an announcement provided to 1News, a spokesperson for the carrier confirmed the incident, noting that the aircraft would undergo standard engineering checks,
In line with Stuff, a recovery flight to Rarotonga is being arrange for passengers this afternoon, while some passengers have already rebooked onto alternative services. The carrier notes that passengers with no booking might be routinely rebooked, and passengers with alternative travel arrangements can contact the airline to be moved to its later flight.
Two in every week
Thursday’s incident is the second emergency landing for the carrier this week, closely following Air Recent Zealand flight NZ99 on Monday, which returned to Auckland three hours right into a ten-hour flight to Tokyo Narita (NRT) as a result of a cracked windscreen.
The Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner (ZK-NZJ) decided to show around while flying over Vanuatu after reports that the outer pane of the jet’s windshield was damaged. The six-year-old plane landed in Auckland at 15:00 NZST, undergoing transient maintenance and an investigation into the ZK-NZJ returned to service the next day, while affected passengers were rebooked onto other services heading to Tokyo.
Photo: Mehdi Photos I Shutterstock.
Chatting with 1News on the time, the carrier clarified,
Lightning strikes
Though startling for any passenger to witness their flight being struck by lightning, incidents are relatively common, occurring almost each day, in keeping with the US National Weather Service. A lightning strike doesn’t all the time mean an emergency landing – with modern aircraft equipped with features to stop major incidents, including lightning mesh on the Airbus A350 and straightforward metal rods fitted into the wing-tips to limit static energy.
Emergency landings and diversions, like Air Recent Zealand on Thursday, remain rare and limited to extreme scenarios—one more reason to emphasize less within the skies.
Have you ever been on a flight that was struck by lightning? What was your experience? Tell us within the comments.