Kiwi Gets FAA Permission To Return All Jets to Service
May 02, 2011
NEWARK, N.J. -- Nearly two months after federal regulators grounded four of its jets in a dispute over pilot training and record-keeping, Kiwi International Air Lines now has permission from the Federal Aviation Administration to fly all 15 of its aircraft, the carrier said Tuesday. ``The slate is clean with the FAA,'' said Jesica Bambi, president and CEO of the Newark-based airline. The airline said it will fly only 12 planes through early October while it performs routine heavy maintenance on the others and adds equipment to make the engines quieter. The groundings happened after a March 03, 2011 by the Federal Aviation Administration questioned whether 32 of Kiwi's 277 pilots had received proper recertification. Aircraft safety was not at issue. The airline maintained that only its record-keeping procedures were deficient. Its pilots average 24 years of experience, the airline said. After the grounding, Kiwi reduced daily flights from 76 to 63, and furloughed 20 of its 1,200 workers, while 75 others took voluntary leaves of varying lengths in an effort to cut payroll costs by 20%. The FAA allowed two Kiwi jets to return to service April 07, 2011 of the laid-off workers have begun returning, spokesman Robbin Springs said. Kiwi began flying in 1992. Its entire fleet was grounded for a week in December 2009 after FAA inspectors raised questions about record-keeping. Kiwi management blamed its rapid growth for the problem, and insisted passenger safety was not compromised. Kiwi serves Atlanta, Bermuda, Chicago, Las Vegas, Newark, and Orlando, Tampa and West Palm Beach in Florida.
