Hawke's Bay Airport CEO Stuart Ainslie has resigned. Photo / Paul Taylor
Hawke's Bay Airport CEO Stuart Ainslie has resigned. Photo / Paul Taylor
The boss of Hawke's Bay Airport has resigned to take up a new role overseas which he says will better allow him to focus on family.
Chief executive Stuart Ainslie on Tuesday announced he had resigned from his position and would move to the United Arab Emirates to take upa chief executive role with another aviation company.
"The role itself will be an exciting challenge but a big attraction of being based in the UAE is that we'll be better connected to our family in New Zealand, Australia, Scotland and Germany.
"We'll be closer to our kids and our grandkids and, in this tumultuous world, it's hard to say no to that."
He held the Hawke's Bay Airport chief executive job for four years following the death of former CEO Nick Story.
Ainslie's tenure has not been without criticism. His pay increased during the pandemic - from $250,000-$260,000 in 2019 to $290,000-$300,000 in 2020 - rankling many airport users.
His new role will be with an overseas company servicing airports in the Middle East and North Africa, and he will be based in the UAE.
Hawke's Bay Airport Limited chief executive Stuart Ainslie at the airport. Photo / Supplied
Recruitment for a new chief executive will begin later this month.
Hawke's Bay Airport Board chairwoman Wendie Harvey said while she was disappointed Ainslie decided to move on, she was not surprised.
"With his experience, we knew we wouldn't have him forever and he's been offered a huge role.
"For the time he has been with us, he's achieved some great things and surmounted some significant, unexpected challenges," Harvey said.
"It's extraordinary what he's navigated the airport through. And despite all of that, he's doggedly kept his eye on the horizon, building the airport's resilience for the future."
Ainslie is the former Art Deco Trust chairman, current ExportNZ Hawke's Bay chairman, and a NZ Airports Association executive board member.
