Jacinda Ardern has appealed to Air New Zealand and its engineers to reach a resolution, saying "no one wants to see that strike occurring" over the Christmas period.
It comes after aviation unions revealed yesterday the strike notice they had issued last week was for three days - December 21, 22 and 23.
It has been estimated it could impact up to 100,000 travellers.
"I have urged both parties directly to do all they can to reach resolution today," Ms Ardern said.
"No one wants to see that strike occurring over that period of time that would cause significant disruption and my hope would be it will be a successful mediation."
When asked if a prime minister should be involved in the issue, Ms Ardern said she had done what she could do "for now" and "conveyed my strong desire that they find a resolution in mediation.
"It would cause severe disruption for a huge number of families. This warranted me sharing a view."
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