General Work Aviation only operator in EG
Malabo - Equatorial Guinea's ministry of transport has grounded the planes of all but one of the country's 20 air transport firms, including the national carrier, state radio said on Tuesday.
The national airline, Ecuatoguineana de Aviacion (EGA), and 18 other firms had their operating licences annulled on Monday by deputy transport minister Miguel Iyanga Djoba following an inspection of aircraft fleets by South African experts.
Only General Works Aviacion, which is a private operator, was allowed to remain in business, pending verified improvements in safety and airworthiness standards by other companies, the radio report said.
The other firms failed to meet standards laid down by the International Civil Aviation Organisation and no carrier "can undertake commercial air transport operations without a valid airworthiness certificate", according to a ministerial decision.
The South African experts were called in after the crash on July 16 2005, of an Antonov 24 operated by a private company while on a flight from Malabo to Bata. The plane went down shortly after takeoff, killing 81 people known to have crammed aboard an aircraft with a theoretical capacity of 48 passengers and four crew.