Airport Operations Manager

5d5 days ago

Air New Zealand

Wellington, NZ · Full-time · NZ$130,000 – NZ$170,000

About this role

Kia ora! At Air New Zealand, our people are at the heart of everything we do. We’re proud to be a world-class airline, looking for an experienced Airport Operations Manager to join our Wellington Airport team and deliver seamless, safe, and customer-focused operations every day.

As an Airport Operations Manager working on shifts, no two days are the same. You will support and lead your team through challenges in a fast-paced airport environment, ensuring On Time Performance (OTP), safety, and customer satisfaction targets are met while capturing lessons from disruptions.

Lead with a strong safety mindset, proactively identifying risk, encouraging open reporting, and embedding controls in decision-making. Demonstrate strategic thinking to bring Air New Zealand strategies to life through better basics, continuous improvements, and operational excellence in a complex regulatory environment.

Build talent and teams with a strong customer focus, identifying operational challenges and implementing efficient solutions. Collaborate as part of a cohesive team, role-modelling leadership principles to foster a strong, accountable, customer-focused culture.

Requirements

Successful track record of working in complex environments, ideally within airport operations
Approachable people leader who demonstrates visible leadership, builds strong connections, coaches operational leaders, and drives a culture of trust and high performance
Demonstrated success managing complex live operations and navigating disruption calmly with sound processes, risk-aware judgement, and timely decision making
High level of resilience and ability to stay calm under pressure
Experience in analysing data, strategic planning, and leading process and cultural change to deliver superior results
Proven ability to build and maintain positive stakeholder relations
Familiarity with airport industrial relations practices and the application of collective agreements

Responsibilities

Accountable for regulatory compliance across safety, emergency management, and security, including required assurance and reporting
Lead daily airport operations to achieve safe, on-time performance (OTP) and service targets, ensuring regulatory compliance and operational integrity
Act as the senior escalation point during significant incidents, coordinating with Crew, Engineering, and Operations for timely resolution and recovery
Role-model Air New Zealand's leadership principles and values to build a strong, accountable, and customer-focused team culture
Analyse operational performance data to identify trends, then recommend and implement targeted improvements
Implement practical solutions to improve operational efficiency and productivity while delivering excellent customer experiences
Build strong relationships with key stakeholders and contractors
Lead proactive resource optimisation by reviewing schedules and demand patterns, maintaining on-the-day oversight during off-schedule events