AIR FORCE WORKHORSE: A Hercules C-130.
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The 51-year-old single man from Renwick was killed during a routine engine-testing procedure at a remote corner of the airfield about 8.15am.
Police named him as Miles Hunter.
Emergency services performed CPR on the former motorcycle mechanic but he was pronounced dead at the scene.
Fyfe said Hunter joined the company in 2005 and described him as a "safe pair of hands".
"He was always very cautious and diligent and a valued member of the team," he said. "He was really well-respected by colleagues and it is a great tragedy to lose him in this way."
Before working for Safe Air, Hunter had been a motorcycle mechanic who put himself through training at the Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology.
"So he had been involved with engines most of his working career."
One other man had been involved in the test run with Hunter this morning, Fyfe said.
"Engine runs are very common here at the base and the two men involved in this particular procedure were very experienced," he said.
"Obviously the other employee has been deeply affected by the whole incident. We have a lot of support around him and there is a close friend with him. It must have been very difficult for him to witness."
The cause of the death was still unknown and the Department of Labour had taken responsibility for the investigation, Fyfe said.
The Rolls Royce T-56 engine, off a C-130 Hercules, being tested wasn't fitted to an aircraft for the test run, he said.
"We genuinely do not know how this accident could have occurred but we are doing everything we can to support police and the Department of Labour as the investigation proceeds," he said.
"It is still very early days, I assume it will take some time to evaluate all the data and form a conclusion.
"I guess in any business you never expect anything like this and when it does happen it comes from the most unlikely quarter a relatively routine process like an engine run. But we will be keen to learn anything that will help avoid any risk of something like this happening in the future."
Air New Zealand's main focus was on providing support for Hunter's family and colleagues, Fyfe said.
"This is a very tight-knit organisation and many of the staff are deeply affected by what has happened," he said. "We have mobilised a special assistance team here that are trained in victim support and I will be staying overnight to see how things progress."
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