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1st Ld: Radar outage grounds flights across New Zealand

Xinhua, June 23, 2015 Adjust font size:

Flights all around New Zealand are grounded Tuesday after a nationwide radar failure.

Airways New Zealand, which monitors New Zealand airspace, issued a statement saying the failure occurred at 2:48 p.m. local time Tuesday.

"We are holding all aircraft on the ground; however those in the air will be cleared to land," it said.

It apologized for the inconvenience caused by the problem.

Transport Minister Simon Bridges said Civil Aviation Authority and Airways New Zealand had told him the cause of the failure was not yet known, but aviation safety was not affected.

"All departures have been suspended and the landing of any incoming aircraft is being staggered," Bridges said in a statement.

"Air traffic control is still able to communicate with any incoming planes via radio contact. I have been assured that there is absolutely no compromise to the safety of passengers of planes and I will be receiving regular updates." Endi