A war of words has erupted between Air New Zealand and the police over suggestions of a drink-driving problem within the company.
Air New Zealand was left fuming on Monday after an internal police memo was released to TV3 identifying four cases within 12 months in which Air New Zealand employees had been caught over the blood alcohol limit on their way to work.
One case is believed to have involved a pilot, and in the memo Superintendent John Kelly questioned whether Air New Zealand was doing enough to ensure public safety.
In media release on Monday, Air New Zealand accused the police of using loose language, while in a statement Police Commissioner Howard Broad said police had a mandate to protect the public.
The airline's chief executive, Rob Fyfe, says the airline is being misrepresented by the police, as its the record of its 12,000 staff over drink-driving is better than the national average.
However, he says he cannot guarantee a pilot will never turn up to fly after drinking as it is not reasonable to test all pilots before they start every flight.
Mr Fyfe told Morning Report an incident of drink driving does not in itself translate into a culture of a drink problem within an organisation. He says he's disappointed Superintendent Kelly wrote the memo 18 months after discussing the issue with the airline.
The police issued a short statement on Tuesday morning saying they are satisfied that Air New Zealand has appropriate policies to deal with alcohol-related issues.
CAA has no concerns
The Civil Aviation Authority's spokepserson, Bill Sommer, says he doesn't believe there is an alcohol problem with pilots in Air New Zealand or any airline.
"Nothing's been raised with us at all," he says. "We know that people involved in aviation are very concerned to maintain safety standards."
Two Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union (EPMU) members, who are employees of Air New Zealand, have been involved in alleged drink-driving incidents.
National secretary Andrew Little says there is no drink-driving problem or culture within the company. He says the issue among the airline's employees is no different from that in the rest of population.
