- No qualified Accountable Manager since July 19, 2013
- Failure to check aircraft logs, flight manifest, weather, etc.
- Failure to present to the CAAP the airman license (Aircraft Mechanic License) during ramp inspection
- Series of occurrences that affected several flight operations
- Refueling with passenger on board involving RP-C8989 on August 14, 2013
- Excessive flight duty time case under the enforcement and legal service
MANILA - (UPDATE 2, 7:27 p.m.) The government has suspended the operations of Zest Airways due to safety concerns, with travel bookings of at least 1,000 passengers going awry as of today.
"Zest Air's air operator certificate is suspended and hereby precluded to engage in air carrier operations, which shall take effect upon the receipt of this notice/letter and shall remain in effect until this authority is assured that the necessary corrective actions and compliance with aviation safety standards has been undertake by your airline," the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) said in a memorandum.
CAAP said its monitoring revealed that Zest Air committed a series of serious deviations and infractions of the rules and standards prescribed under the Philippine Civil Aviation Regulations (PCARs).
CAAP cited a series of incidents that affected several flight operations, as follows:
- Hydraulic system AOG at Kalibo on July 30, 2013 (RP-C8994) and on July 23 (RP-C8996);
- Fuel overflow AOG at Kalibo on July 22 (RP-8993) and on August 9 (RP-C8997);
- Fuel coupling cap and spoiler servo actuator AOG at Tagbilaran on August 13 (RP-C8997); and
- Refueling with passengers on board involving RP-C8989 on August 14, 2013, thus failing to conform to PCAR 8.9.12 (a)(1) and (2).
CAAP said several Zest Air pilots have exceeded the 100-hour flight time limit per month because of the increase in operations and a crew shortage.
According to an official of Zest Air, eight flights carrying almost 1,000 passengers failed to take off. "Most rebooked to other airlines, given hotels and food," the source said.
Cebu Pacific fills the void
Cebu Pacific, which also flies to the destinations that Zest Air flies to, said it would take on the slack created by the latter's suspension.
Candice Iyog, Cebu Air Inc (CEB) vice president for marketing and distribution, said, "CEB will accommodate as many passengers as possible."
Owned by former ambassador Alfredo Yao, Zest Air flies to 20 local destinations out of Manila and Clark. The Philippine low-cost carrier also flies from Manila to Incheon and Pusan in Korea, Kuala Lumpur, Shanghai, Taipei and Jinjian City in Fujian, China. In addition, the airline has direct flights to Beijing and other Chinese destinations from the Kalibo and Cebu airports.
Last month, Air Asia Philippines completed its acquisition of 49 percent of the voting rights and 85 percent of the economic interest in Zest Air. The transaction, which was completed in May 10, also includes buying 100 percent of Asiawide Airways Inc. In exchange, Yao will get a 13 percent stake in Air Asia Philippines for $16 million.
Source: http://www.interaksyon.com
MANILA (UPDATE) – The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) on Friday ordered the suspension of air operations of Zest Airways, a joint venture of businessman Alfredo Yao and Philippines' AirAsia, over various safety violations.
In a letter to Zest Air owner Yao dated August 16, CAAP officer-in-charge Capt. John Andrews said it is "alarmed" by Zest Air's series of "serious deviations and infractions" of the rules and standards under the Philippine Civil Aviation Regulations.
"It is informed that your Air Operator Certificate is suspended and hereby precluded to engage in air carrier operations," he said.
The suspension will only be lifted once the CAAP is "assured" of the necessary corrective actions and compliance with aviation safety standards.
The CAAP's decision was based on a report conducted by a group of airworthiness inspectors tasked to monitor Zest Air operations last July 31.
In the August 16 report, the airworthiness inspectors said it found continuing safety violations made by ZestAir and recommended the immediate suspension of its operations.
Andrews said Zest Air was placed on “heightened surveillance” 3 weeks ago, and the inspectors saw “no significant trend of correcting the defects.”
Accountable manager
One of Zest Air’s violations was its lack of qualified accountable manager, a position formerly occupied by Capt. Ely Tabora.
According to Andrews, Tabora vacated his post on July 16, but Zest Air failed to replace him.
“They had 10 days to replace him and his replacement had to be approved by the CAAP. This did not happen,” he said.
He added that Zest Air “illegally operated” in this period because of this.
Other violations
Other violations were Zest Air's failure of the flight crew to check aircraft logs, flight manifest and weather and failure to present the airman license to the CAAP during ramp inspection.
Zest Air was also cited for various "occurrences that affected flight operations," such as a fuel overflow in Kalibo on July 22 and August 9.
Another safety violation was the airline's refueling with passengers on board last August 14.
Andrews also cited a flight in Tagbilaran that was grounded because of a missing fuel cap and defective flight controls.
He said the captain reported that the fuel cap was missing, then later retracted and said the cap had been found.
However, inspectors later discovered that the cap was still missing.
“It was discovered that the cap has been missing since March of this year,” said Andrews.
Zest Air was also cited for excessive flight duty time. The report noted that since January 2012, several pilots have exceeded the 100 hours flight time limit per month due to rise in flight operations and flight crew shortage.
"Zest Air lacks procedures in monitoring the flight time limit of pilots and procedures ... In 2012, 24 pilots have exceeded the flying time limitations," it said.
Zest Air flies to 9 domestic destinations and 5 international routes via the Ninoy Aquino International Airport as well as hubs in Kalibo and Cebu.
Last May, Malaysia's AirAsia Berhad through local unit Philippines’ AirAsia Inc. completed a deal with Zest Air.
AirAsia, which controls 40% of Philippines’ AirAsia, acquired an 85% economic interest and 49% voting rights in ZestAir as well as a 100 percent interest in Yao’s Asiawide Airways Inc.
Source: http://www.abs-cbnnews.com
