23.05.2022 - 23:13 UTC
The US Department of Transportation has rejected the request by Californian start-up AirBahn (ARB, Ontario) to extend its certificate of public necessity beyond April 30, 2022, as the carrier has not made any meaningful progress with its FAA air carrier certification.
The decision resets AirBahn's launch preparations as it will now have to restart its DOT recertification from scratch.
"While the Department is willing to work with applicants, where warranted, and allow additional time to file information, we cannot allow applications to remain pending indefinitely. Furthermore, processing and maintaining incomplete applications delay the Department's ability to process applications from companies that have prepared complete filings and are prepared to complete the steps necessary to commence operations," the regulator said.
AirBahn originally received the DOT certificate of public convenience for interstate and foreign scheduled passenger air transportation in October 2020. The authority gave the start-up a year to secure its air carrier certificate and launch operations. After two requests, the validity of the certificate was extended through the end of April 2022 as the start-up...
27.01.2022 - 16:19 UTC
The US Department of Transportation has extended the fitness certificate of AirBahn (ARB, Ontario) by three months to April 30, 2022.
The Californian start-up's current certificate expires on January 31, 2022. Therefore, without an extension and in the face of still incomplete FAA certification, the authority would have expired shortly.
"We have verified the progress AirBahn has made with the FAA and find that good cause does exist to grant the company's request for an extension," the DOT said.
The airline previously said that it expected to complete its certification by the end of April, despite delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. It is currently on Phase 3 of the process and expects to move to the final phase shortly with proving flights of its only A320-200. Despite this plan, AirBahn requested the DOT to extend its certificate through the end of June 2022 to ensure additional margin, but the regulator did not agree to such an extension.
In a recent interview with ch-aviation, Executive Vice-President Scott Hall said AirBahn was...
04.01.2022 - 09:51 UTC
AirBahn (ARB, Ontario) has petitioned the US Department of Transportation to extend the validity of its certificate of public convenience and necessity through June 30, 2022, to allow it to complete its certification amidst COVID-caused delays.
The Californian start-up backed by the owners of Pakistan's AirBlue (PA, Karachi Int'l) said it requires more time to "work through the remaining Phases of FAA Certification". AirBahn took delivery of its first A320-200, N786PB (msn 3974), on November 21. The aircraft remains parked at Ontario awaiting conformity inspections, which are expected by the end of January 2022. The airline has also been struggling to secure simulator training time for its pilots. It also highlighted market unpredictability brought on by the latest waves of the COVID-19 pandemic.
AirBahn said it hoped to complete certification and training by the end of April 2022, but "conservative planning estimates indicate an extension through June 30, 2022" would be preferable.
29.11.2021 - 16:42 UTC
AirBahn (ARB, Ontario) has taken delivery of its first A320-200, following transfer from Pakistani sister carrier AirBlue (PA, Karachi Int'l). N768PB (msn 3974) was ferried from Istanbul New via Reykjavik Keflavik and Bangor to Ontario over the course of November 20-21, 2021, Flightradar24 ADS-B data shows. The 12.4-year-old aircraft had been operated by AirBlue through January 2021 and is now owned by AirBahn, the ch-aviation fleets advanced module indicates.
In preparation for its launch, the Californian start-up has also started recruiting for a number of administrative and crew positions at its planned headquarters in Irvine, CA. It is also seeking maintenance specialists to work at Ontario, indicating that it will at least maintain its fleet there. Finally, AirBahn is also seeking station managers at Oakland, Sacramento Int'l, and San José, CA airports, suggesting that it would serve all three in its initial phase.
The start-up, which has been in the works since 2018, said in a recent Department of Transportation (DOT) filing...
