No qualified flight inspector attached to Trans Guyana – Nascimento

In light of the recent call by Transport Minister Roberson Benn with respect to intensifying surveillance at the Ogle International Airport (OIA), Trans  Guyana Airways Public Relations Consultant Kit Nascimento disclosed that no qualified flight operation inspector (FOI) is attached to the airline.

He said Trans Guyana Airways has written to the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) and Minister Benn for the past five years requesting that they engage the services of a flight operations inspector, but this was denied.

Surprise

Nascimento said it was quite a surprise to have heard the minister speaking about heightening surveillance at the facility and contending that it should have been done years ago.

Currently, the Trans Guyana consultant noted that there is no inspector to overlook the regulation at Trans Guyana Airways, which is critical to its operations. He reiterated the need for a Flight Operation Inspection Unit for the GCAA to regulate the operations, noting that without this post, errors will occur.

Guyana Times understands that every company has to contract their own FOI to police the operation to ensure that the company follows all procedures and regulations at the specific site.

These inspectors report directly to the GCAA. This publication learnt that the last FOI was not given the opportunity to operate in a manner desirous of the GCAA, and as such, he was literally forced out of Trans Guyana Airways. That official is now working in Jamaica.

In correcting the situation, the Caribbean Aviation Safety and Security Oversight System (CASSOS) is overlooking operations for the specific airlines.

Concerns
 
During a press conference on Wednesday, Minister Benn said his ministry and the GCAA are concerned over the number of aircraft incidents and mishaps at OIA and interior locations.

Benn said his ministry has been discussing additional measures and oversights to improve the level of surveillance with respect to aircraft operations.

However, a team of investigators under the watch of Transport Canada has arrived at the crash site and once it removes the engine from the wreckage, it will be transported to Olive Creek by helicopter and then to OIA.  The ELT is also being extracted and will be examined shortly.

The autopsies performed on the bodies of pilot Blake Slater and cargo loader Dwayne Jacobs were completed on Wednesday. They both died as result of multiple injuries. Blake, according to a post-mortem examination would have received injuries to the head while Jacobs sustained injuries to the chest.

 Funeral on Monday
 
Jacobs’s brother Tobin Jacobs was not too sure about funeral arrangements, but according to information received, the pilot will be cremated in Guyana on Monday.

On Saturday last, the Cessna Caravan bearing registration number 8R-GHS crashed just after takeoff from Olive Creek, claiming the lives Slater, 25, and Jacobs, 28.

The aircraft was at the time on a shuttle operation between Olive Creek and Imbaimadai, transporting fuel. The “Mayday” emergency call was broadcast at approximately 10:56h on the day it went down; thus, an aerial search was immediately activated.

After 11 hours of search, the wreckage was located on Sunday in the Marikina Mountain by Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Special Force officers.  They were then inserted at a location some 1.2 miles from the wreckage and trekked on foot to the crash site.

They were joined by another team on Monday and managed to find both Blake and Jacobs.

The bodies were recovered on Tuesday morning and flown to the city later that day.

Source:    http://www.guyanatimesgy.com 

Cessna 208B Grand Caravan, 8R-GHS, Trans Guyana Airways