Air New Zealand passengers who completely missed Christmas Day get special surprise

Passengers on an Air New Zealand flight from the US had resigned themselves to the fact they would completely miss Christmas Day.

Flight NZ7 from San Francisco to Auckland took off on 24 December, with a flight time of 12-hours that would see them cross the international date line and land on 26 December – missing out on even the tiniest twinkle of Christmas Day magic.

But the airline had other ideas.

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The crew pulled out all the stops to transform the Dreamliner into a Christmas wonderland, surprising more than 200 travellers onboard by bringing a one-of-a-kind Christmas celebration to the skies.

Passengers were delighted by a dazzling onboard illumination and were surprised by moments of magic across the flight, adding festive magic to the cabin interior.

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Air New Zealand Chief Executive Greg Foran says the airline wanted to create a special surprise to bring festive joy to its customers this year.

"Every detail was designed to bring the magic of Christmas to life, even at 30,000 feet. It's our way of spreading some Air New Zealand manaaki to one lucky flight full of festive travellers this year. What a terrific way to celebrate Christmas in the skies."

One of the crew members shared that none of the passengers had been expecting a Christmas-themed flight.

"To have that kind of light show, they didn't expect anything," he said. "It's always a bit weird [flying over Christmas] but it's good when you have a good crew and you have good passengers to share these special moments."

Aside from the light show, passengers also received a gift and were treated to a special themed menu.