How often do we hear of an RNZAF aircraft breaking down when on an overseas trip or mission? Pretty damned often I'd say.
Airlines measure dispatch reliability as leaving on time or within 15 minutes when it's related to the plane and its systems. A poor figure would be
around 97% with some aircraft having well over 99% reliability. A delay caused by a crewing issue etc is not counted. For example if they had an issue with
a cargo hold loading system that jammed, & they could fix it in 5 minutes, that would be within the 15 minutes rule.
It would be fascinating to know what dispatch reliability the RNZAF fleet of aircraft has as a whole.
All too often we hear of a C130 Hercules breaking down and another plane sent to its rescue with some part/ parts!
If the RNZAF were a cargo airline they would have gone out of business years ago.
As a contrast Emirates fleet of A380's sometimes have a 100% dispatch reliability for a whole month!
And I would be willing to bet that Donald Trump's Boeing 757 has a whole lot better dispatch reliability figure!
It might be time for the Government to buy two new Airbus A320's, park them in Auckland, and let Air New Zealand operate them and service
them on behalf of the Government.