Air New Zealand will soon take delivery of another all black aircraft to celebrate the All Blacks rugby world cup championship.
The black 777-300ER rolled out of Boeing’s paint hangar in Seattle on December 16 and is expected to be delivered to Air New Zealand in late January. The paint scheme is meant to highlight Air New Zealand’s long-time sponsorship of the country’s rugby team, the airline said.
“It’s a sensational looking aircraft and will really turn heads at airports around the world,” said loose forward Kieran Read, who attended the unveiling along with halfback Andy Ellis. “I reckon they should paint all their planes like this.”
The carrier says it plans to have six all black aircraft by the middle of next year, including two Airbus A320s and three Beech 1900D turboprops.
The airline says that, contrary to popular belief, the black paint scheme won’t cause the aircraft to heat up “a great deal.” It says the more than 330 individual TV screens in the cabin will create more additional heat than the black paint.
