An investigation by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has found its former Deputy Chairman of the board used confidential information to gain commercial advantage over businesses in competition with his own.
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On 8 September in 2017 Peter Griffiths attended a CAA board meeting, where he learned that the acting director of Civil Aviation was planning to suspend Tauranga-based operator Sunair Aviation due to significant safety concerns.
Mr Griffiths then contacted the management team at Barrier Air, an operator he had recently taken part-ownership of.
According to the CAA, Mr Griffiths suggested they contact Sunair to offer help in meeting any outstanding contractual obligations that could no longer be completed due to the suspension.
The investigation found that Sunair learnt of its suspension from this contact rather than the official CAA notice which was sent later.
Mr Griffiths resigned in September last year upon realising the information he leaked to Barrier Air was considered confidential.
He apologised for the error and told the CAA his intention was only to minimise the disruption Sunair customers would likely experience.
Investigation head, Mary Scholten, QC recommended the board be more stringent when sharing information that may be of interest to members with external financial interest.
She said the board also needed to consider whether it was appropriate to appoint members with financial interests in the aviation sector.
Board Chairman Nigel Gould said he was saddened by the events that took place.
"While I accept that Mr Griffiths' actions in the Sunair case were well intentioned, they nevertheless represent a profound error of judgement by a member of the Board," said Mr Gould.
"He has suffered the consequences of that error and will likely continue to do so for some time."
He said Mr Griffiths was considered to be a capable and dedicated board member.
