An Air New Zealand flight travelling from Queenstown to Auckland was forced to divert to Christchurch on Saturday afternoon after a smoke smell was detected inside the cabin.
According to Stuff, flight ANZ630 had been en route to Auckland when it turned back over Victoria Forest Park before safely landing in Christchurch, according to flight tracking data.
Air New Zealand Chief Operations Officer, Ground and Inflight, Kate Boyer, said the diversion was made “due to a reported smoke smell in the cabin,” Stuff has quoted.
The aircraft landed safely, and emergency services were waiting on the ground in line with standard procedures.
“Passengers disembarked as normal, and we'd like to thank them for their understanding and patience as we work to get them to their destination as quickly as possible,” said Boyer, as quoted by Stuff.
She added that the aircraft would now undergo an engineering assessment to determine the source of the reported smell.
The Airbus A320 departed Queenstown at around 2.15 pm and landed in Christchurch just before 3.30 pm. During the diversion, the flight became one of the most tracked aircraft on FlightRadar, with nearly 4,000 people following its journey worldwide, as reported by Stuff.