Napier CIB staff should not be moved to Hastings, says a reader. BONUS: The runway extension is a big plus, says airport chairman John Palairet.
So it is in the interest of efficiency that consideration is being given to moving the Napier CIB staff (and who else?) to Hastings.
It seems the current CIB officers don't think it is a good idea and I support them on that. I feel qualified to argue their case having served in the same office for many years, albeit retiring more than 12 years ago.
Of course some things will be different now, but basic police work is not and interaction with the public (both the good and the bad) and the ability to do that doesn't change. That often means at a moment's notice to be available to speak to a witness, a complainant, an offender, to be somewhere to observe an action. All of those and more will be severely hindered by the travel factor and there is without doubt going to be a negative impact for staff and public alike.
Teamwork, local focus and high morale is vital in a CIB office, as with any team, and dissatisfaction about such a decision and its continuing impact should this shift occur can only be harmful.
Further, I know how important it is to have numbers of experienced CIB officers in this city to be available and handy to respond and to be able to back up uniform staff should any urgent need arise. The fact that this idea has not been rejected on its first airing suggests to me that the decision has already been made and, like the moving of police communications to Wellington, no matter how poorly it serves us at times, we will be told that it is working.
But perhaps we should not worry because in about 15 years when someone else wants to instrument change they might hit on the "new" idea of taking the CIB back to the community that they need to be close to. They might recognise what basic police work requires.Noel HawkinsNapierRunway advantagesI refer to B W Erickson's letter headed with the grossly inappropriate caption of "Runway Scandal".
Mr Erickson complains that the extended runway of 1750 metres cannot cater for the Boeing 737-800 and that this somehow undermines the basic premise behind the recent development.
It was always understood that the operational characteristics of this particular aircraft would not make it suitable for Hawke's Bay, although it could operate here under certain conditions.
The important point is that both major airline groupings, Air New Zealand/Virgin Australia/Pacific Blue and Qantas/Jet Star operate jet aircraft on domestic routes suitable for Hawke's Bay.
The most outstanding example is the A320 used extensively by both groups on domestic routes in both countries. There are other suitable jet aircraft options available.
If business conditions are such that a second major operator commences services in Hawke's Bay, a range of aircraft types are available and it is completely misleading and inaccurate to imply that the Hawke's Bay public have in some way been deceived.John PalairetChairman
Hawke's Bay Airport Limited