Sunair Aviation (Tauranga) has been grounded as of Friday, September 8, after the Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand (CAANZ) suspended its Air Operator's Certificate (AOC) for the second time in almost twelve months.
According to the New Zealand Herald, the carrier's Certificate of Airworthiness was also suspended in a move that will initially keep the carrier grounded for a 10-day period. The exact cause for the suspension of the AOC was not specified.
During the previous occurrence in December last year, the CAANZ said it had "serious concerns" about the airline's safety oversight adding that it "posed an imminent and unacceptable risk to public safety". The carrier resumed operations after a ten-day suspension of services.
Sunair specializes in sightseeing charters as well as scheduled air-taxi flights connecting several New Zealand airports using Cessna (single piston) 172s and Piper (twin piston) PA-23 Aztecs.
