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The Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) has cleared Tiger Airways Australia to resume imited flying from August 10, ending a nearly six week suspension of its AOC after the airline was first grounded by the regulator on July 2. The decision follows a thorough investigation by CASA into a number of safety issues at Tiger, beginning with the issue of a ‘show cause’ in March after a number of incidents earlier this year.
Despite giving approval for Tiger to restart its domestic operations, CASA has stipulated a number of strict conditions under which the embattled airline must adhere to. These include:
– pilot training and proficiency
– pilot rostering and fatigue management
– currency and revision of operational manuals and related documents
– improved change-management processes and the appointment of additional qualified personnel in key positions
– amendments to the airline’s safety management system
“CASA will be closely monitoring the operations of Tiger Airways through scheduled surveillance and regular spot checks. We will also be meeting regularly with the airline to review ongoing safety performance and compliance with the conditions on the airline’s operations,” CASA’s director of aviation safety, John McCormick said in a statement. “Tiger Airways has co-operated with CASA’s investigation and is to be credited for a constructive approach. On that basis, CASA now believes allowing Tiger Airways Australia to resume operations is acceptable.”
As part of the conditions imposed on it, CASA has also restricted Tiger to fly a maximum of 18 sectors per day during August, after which more sectors may be added depending on the airline’s safety performance.Tiger has also drastically cut back the number of Australian destinations on its domestic schedule, which according to its website now includes just Adelaide, Melbourne (Tullamarine), Sydney, Brisbane, Perth and the Gold Coast.
