WELLINGTON, Oct. 29 (Chinese media) -- A plane from the Australian airline Qantas
"piggybacked" an Air New Zealand flight across the Pacific Ocean overnight,
after its weather radar stopped working.
The Air New Zealand flight was three hours out of Los Angeles, and about 35
km from the Qantas plane, when the Australian captain called on the radio to ask
for help, The Daily Telegraph in Sydney reported on Wednesday.
The planes tracked each other closely as weather updates from the Air New
Zealand flight were relayed by radio to the Qantas plane.
A Qantas spokesman said the weather antenna wasn't working to the "full
satisfaction" of the crew.
The 280 passengers were not in danger and the flight continued in safety to
New Zealand, the spokesman said.
"They chose the safest option to divert to Auckland, which had preferable
weather to other diversion options, coupled with the fact the Air New Zealand
plane was there to provide guidance," said the spokesman.
"The aircraft were vertically separated at all times and governed by air
traffic control," he added.
By the time the planes arrived in Auckland, a replacement antenna had been
flown across the Tasman from Sydney.
With repairs complete, the flight arrived in Sydney shortly before midday
Wednesday, four hours behind schedule.
The Qantas spokesman said the exact cause of the faulty weather antenna was
not yet known.
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