that McCaw would work at Christchurch Helicopters, where he is a Director and Shareholder, and was obtaining a commercial helicopter licence. McCaw has since obtained said licence and has continued working as a helicopter pilot. He flew several rescue and reconnaissance missions following the 2016 Kaikoura earthquake that struck the South Island. He also performed milk drops around rural areas of New Zealand while having an endorsement with Fonterra, in which his sister and her husband are dairy farmers. In 2010, McCaw and Dan Carter were on a NZ$750,000 a year contract that saw them through to the end of the 2011 Rugby World Cup, making them the highest paid rugby players in New Zealand at the time. This contract would still have applied if they had not been selected for the World Cup squad. Honours and awards In 2019, World Rugby inducted McCaw to its Hall of Fame, alongside Shiggy Konno, Os du Randt, Peter Fatialofa, Graham Henry, and Diego Ormaechea. Order of New Zealand In December 2011, then Prime Minister John Key revealed that he had asked McCaw about the possibility of a knighthood in the 2012 New Year Honours, but that McCaw had turned it down. According to Key, "He made the call that he's still in his playing career and it didn't feel quite right for him, that day where he's no longer on the pitch may be the right time for him." No formal offer was ultimately made. McCaw was appointed a member of New Zealand's highest honour, the Order of New Zealand, in the 2016 New Year Honours. The honour surpassed the knighthood he had previously turned down prior to his retirement because only 20 living New Zealanders can gain membership at any one time. Notes References External links Richie McCaw | Rugby Database Profile |- |- 1980 births Living people Members of the Order of New Zealand New Zealand rugby union players New Zealand people of Scottish descent New Zealand international rugby union players Canterbury rugby union players Crusaders (rugby union) players Rugby union flankers World Rugby Awards winners World Rugby Hall of Fame inductees World Rugby Players of the Year People educated at Otago Boys' High School Lincoln University (New Zealand) alumni Rugby union players from Oamaru Barbarian F.C. players Helicopter pilots Glider pilots New Zealand aviators