Auckland Airport is responding to growing community transmission of the COVID-19 Omicron variant with contingency plans
underway to ensure the ongoing operation of the airport.
Auckland Airport is preparing to manage the 24/7 operation of its airfield and terminals with a higher-than-normal rate
of absenteeism. This includes scenario planning for remaining open with more than 25% of business-critical staff unable
to come to work.
Anna Cassels-Brown, General Manager Operations at Auckland Airport, said two years of working around the clock with the
risk of COVID-19 had laid the foundation for Auckland Airport’s planning, but the highly infectious nature of new
variants meant the strategy needed to evolve.
“Whether it’s having the skills to fight an aviation fire or direct a plane on the apron, many in our team are
specialists performing unique roles that aren’t easily replaced or switched around. We need to have plans in place to
mitigate not only the health risk to our staff, but also the operational risk to the aerodrome – so we can keep on
providing those vital connections for people and essential goods,” said Ms Cassels-Brown.
“Our health and safety practices have served us really well to this point, but if we look overseas, we can see Omicron
brings additional challenges particularly in managing shifts and rosters with high rates of staff off sick or needing to
care for family members who are unwell.”
Auckland Airport currently manages around 90% of New Zealand’s international passenger arrivals and departures and air
cargo, including the delivery of vaccines, PPE, and other time critical, high value goods.
“Whether it’s a handful of flights a day or hundreds, there is a minimum level of staffing and service required to
safely keep the aerodrome open. Alongside us, there are dozens of other organisations that are essential to keeping the
airport running. Often, they’re providing services like refuelling or aircraft waste removal – all the invisible
operations that are vital in keeping travellers and freight moving in a smooth, timely, and safe way.
“Running the airport is a team effort and the whole system has been working together to ensure the airport keeps
operating in an environment where we have Omicron.”
With the spread of Omicron and the shift to the Red traffic light setting, Auckland Airport has moved quickly to
introduce new measures relating to workforce continuity, alongside existing measures. These include:Splitting the employees into work bubbles organisation-wideVaccination requirements for all staff and visitors, including external contractorsSplitting shifts into two or more operational “bubbles within a bubble”Excluding all visitors from safety critical workspaces including the Airport Emergency Service station, apron control
tower, and operations centreUsing high frequency RAT testing alongside nasal pharyngeal and saliva PCR surveillance testing.
“More than two years into this pandemic we are yet to have an Auckland Airport staff member become infected while at
work, which is a testament to the character of our people and their meticulous approach to their own and their
colleagues’ health and safety. However, we know the infectious nature of this new variant has reset the rules.”