Southwest probably takes the title for best onboard safety announcements but no airline even comes close to Air New Zealand’s videos.

One of those videos — their Sports Illustrated swimsuit video “Safety In Paradise — has been pulled, ostensibly because of the number of complaints.

Air New Zealand says it wasn’t pressure that led them to pull the safety video, just their normal rotation,

The process of phasing in the previously recorded “Bear Essentials of Safety” video featuring Bear Grylls began on their fleet about a week ago, and the process is almost complete, she said.

I’m skeptical, because ‘Bear Essentials of Safety’ is a video from early 2013 that pre-dated the swimsuit one.

Air New Zealand has been pushing the envelope on its safety videos for at least five years. Anything to lull passengers out of complacency and get their attention for safety, right?

Here’s the first one of the genre that I recall, flight attendants otherwise-naked with their uniforms painted on.

Last fall brought us Betty White and something out of Cocoon

Though as nearly 12 million views on YouTube will attest, it will be hard to ever match their Lord of the Rings video.

(For those so inclined, you can also see ‘the making of’ the swimsuit video, with interviews and candids.)

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