Bruce Moon: Ngai Tahu and Mount Cook

A helicopter pilot performed the stunt of hovering over the summit of Mount Cook for several minutes on Christmas Eve in 2011. This reportedly outraged the great Ngai Tahu panjandrums, those who claim great authority, who brought a case against him in the Timaru District Court.

At last year's sentencing, District Court Judge Joanna Maze is said to have thought this crime so appalling that her "starting point for sentencing had to be the maximum penalty available, a fine of $5000". Only the guilty plea of the pilot led her to reduce this to $3750. She said it must be "seen as one of sacrilege to those to whom Aoraki/Mount Cook is of central cultural importance". (1)