Gordon Vette
Gordon Vette, of Eastern Beach, received the Insignia of an Officer of the NZ Order of Merit for services to aviation, at an investiture ceremony at Government House in Auckland on 20 September 2007. After the tragic Air NZ DC-10 crash into Mt Erebus, he conducted independent research into the cause of the crash that aided the official inquiry. His research led to break-throughs in the field of the systematic human responsibility in airplane crashes, and his studies are used for pilot training worldwide.