IATA renews Eaglexpress’ operational safety certification

An Eaglexpress aircraft.

KUALA LUMPUR: The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has renewed the IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) Operators Certification for Eaglexpress Air Charter Sdn Bhd for two years.

Eaglexpress said in a statement that the certificate, signed by IATA senior vice-president (safety and flight operations) Gilberto Lopez Meyer, confirmed that Eaglexpress had conformed to provisions of the programme manual under the IOSA programme.

This is the second time that the hajj and umrah charter flight operator has been confirmed this status.

“Eaglexpress remains proud to be one of only a few airlines that operate out of Malaysia to have reached this level of safety and performance,” it said.

According to the IATA official website, the IOSA programme is an internationally recognised and accepted evaluation system designed to assess the operational management and control systems of an airline. The total accident rate for IOSA carriers between 2011 and 2015 was 3.3 times lower than the rate for non-IOSA operators. As such, IOSA has become a global standard.

Eaglexpress’ statement comes a month after the Malaysian Aviation Commission (Mavcom) revoked its air service permit, which means it cannot fly to and from any Malaysian destination at present. The airline is awaiting a new ASP,

Eaglexpress said it was now moving from being a provider of ‘wet lease’ aircraft to becoming the leading private provider of scheduled charter flights for hajj and umrah.

“Ultimately we want to make hajj and umrah to be more accessible to the global Muslim population. Safety is the primary concern of pilgrims and their families; that is why this certification is critical. The wellbeing of pilgrims is a responsibility that we take seriously,” the airline said.

Eaglexpress (9A), which is based in KL International Airport, currently operates four Boeing 747-400 aircraft.
-thestar online.