A crack in an Air New Zealand Boeing 737 cockpit window has forced the pilots to return to Auckland.
Air New Zealand says flight NZ407 from Auckland to Wellington returned to Auckland at 8:16am Monday after pilots observed a crack in the outer pane glass of the captain's side cockpit window.
A spokesperson for the airline says the pilots followed standard operating procedure and returned to Auckland as a precautionary measure.
The aircraft landed without incident at Auckland, with passengers re-accommodated on an alternative aircraftm, she says.
The aircraft was being inspected by engineers and was expected to return to service later in the day.
However a passenger on the plane says it was a bit more than a
crack in the cockpit window. He says there was a hole about the
size of an orange and the rest of the glass was a "spiderweb" of
cracks. He says it was apparently a small crack that spread
and then shattered.
The passenger says he understands the pilot flew back to Auckland
on oxygen and was a bit shocked according to the cabin crew.
He says a replacement plane was provided within 20 minutes of
arriving back in Auckland and everyone he saw was "pretty casual"
about it.
Were you on Flight NZ407? One News would like to hear from you. Email us at news@tvnz.co.nz
Latest NZ News Video
-
Kiwi speaks to TVNZ7 from Everest base camp (1:59)
-
Immigration advisor Bill Milnes discusses claims (4:34)
-
Dance to save Shakti service (0:41)
