Domestic carrier Tiger Airways Australia has been grounded by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) over safety fears.
The suspension is initially in place until at least July 9 on all domestic flights within Australia. Tiger Airways’ international flights are continuing as normal.
In a statement, Australia’s CASA said it had been left with little option but to ground the airline after a number of events raised concerns “about the airline’s ability to continue to conduct operations safely”.
“In the circumstances, CASA no longer has confidence in the ability of Tiger Airways Australia to satisfactorily address the safety issues that have been identified,” said the CASA.
The CASA first contacted Tiger Airways Australia in March, imposing a number of conditions on the airline’s on its operating certificate.
These included improving the proficiency of Tiger Airways Australia’s pilots, improvements to pilot training and checking processes and changes to fatigue management.
Tiger Airways Australia, part-owned by Singapore Airlines, is meeting with the CASA in an attempt to resolve the safety concerns.
In a statement, the airline said: “Our goal is to resume our services as quickly as possible whilst restoring the confidence of both CASA and the Australian public at large that safety underpins our operations at all times.”
www.tigerairways.com www.casa.gov.au