BANGKOK – The Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT) has affirmed its ban on some airlines which are yet to be certified for international flights is a normal policy according to the ICAO standards.
CAAT Director-General Chula Sukmanop said the prohibition to certain airlines which are yet to pass evaluation tests for the Air Operator Certificate (AOC) to operate international flights effective from 1 September 2017 complies with the International Civil Aviation Organization’s (ICAO) standards.
The ICAO will conduct an evaluation test in Thailand, for which the CAAT has made preparations, during 20-27 September 2017.
He said nine Thai-registered airlines have so far received the AOC, with a few more expected to follow in September, and a few others in October. The flight prohibition comes from the incompletion of the evaluation process which may have occurred due to delays in the submission of a case from the affected airlines and the shortage of eligible officials.
The CAAT is now processing the AOC cases based on the number of passengers the airline carried in 2016. The CAAT has ensured all airlines have sufficient safety standards to operate domestic flights for the time being and that measures for compensation to affected airlines will be issued after the ICAO has removed the significant safety concern (SSC) status from Thailand.
