not so much that as the passenger handling considerations
with jetstar no longer doing chc-zqn, chc is about as far from zqn as you can get in their network. back to akl may have been better options for the passengers. atleast the bus ride from dud would've been shorter.
i think the jq279 aircraft goes back to akl anyway, so considering the flying for the rest of the day, akl may have been a better option. and most of the passengers would be no worse off back where they started.
still, not knowing the wx forecasts/other considerations etc on the day so a bit harsh to hindsight the crew involved.