JS Air decides to withdraw licence

KARACHI – JS Air, a couple of days earlier, submitted its licence for withdrawal with the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), sources informed Pakistan Today. This withdrawal is strange as the airline could have utilised its worth of Rs 100 million by passing it on to any other company.
However, they would only fetch half a million rupees by withdrawing their licence, sources questioned. Earlier, it was reported that JS Air had halted its operations due to the marginal decline in their business after the crash of one of their air buses in Karachi in November last. Now, after finding it hard to sustain in the industry; the said private airline has submitted for the withdrawal of its licence, it has been learnt.
Reliable sources in the aviation industry informed that clients of JS Air, including British Petroleum (BP), an Italian multinational oil and gas company ENI and BHP Billiton, refused to risk lives of their staff by using JS Air after the crash of its Airbus Beech 1900C in November last, which ultimately resulted in the closure of the airlines.
JS Air formerly transported staff of these companies to their areas of operation including Khardan Wari, Bhit Shah amongst other areas. JS Air started its operations roughly three years ago and has three Beech 1900 aircraft, with the crash it is left with just two aircrafts, sources said. They added that cost of one aircraft of the said model is about $1.5million.
The airline used to fly five flights a week, but after the crash of one of its aircraft in which at least 21 people were killed, clients of the airlines have stopped using the service, sources added. It is to be noted that JS has more than 30 percent shares in Airblue and that too has suffered a crash last year in which some 153 passengers got killed.
Last time, when contacted, the Air Transport Director Captain Aftab refused to answer about closure of airlines despite the fact that this department of the authority is likely to be privy to any seizure of operations in the case of any airline.
It is to be noted that investigation of crash of one aircraft of JS air on November 5, 2010 is still ongoing. Sources, in this regard, informed that the CAA had failed to observe safety standards with regards to specific aircraft in question which was flying with an underpowered engine.
In the next phase, administration of the airline would be selling its aircrafts, sources informed. The Air Traffic (National Regulation) CAA General Manager Khawar Ghyas could not be reached for comments in this regard.