TGW/TT show cause notice and now AOC suspension?
Can anyone shed light on the original CASA “show cause” in March 2011? How did TGW/TT respond? Why has that response and their subsequent operations not satisfied CASA? Did CASA during this period change the goal posts? Have there been any recent changes in personnel or the head count in TGW/TT CEO, Flight Ops, Maintenance, Training, Safety Management, Quality Assurance, and Compliance Depts. etc.?
How can TGW senior management have allowed the situation to deteriorate to such a level as an AOC suspension? One would have thought that a “show cause” would have been more than a sufficient warning, rap on the knuckles, an alarm bell, a necessary wake up call, gentle coercion or arm twisting for TGW management indeed to respond in an appropriate and timely manner? The suspension last night could hardly be seen by accountable and responsible TGW managers as “out of the blue”, an ambush, or a surprise? Given CASA’s close oversight, inspection and regulation, why could they not convince TGW to behave earlier? Can someone please give some insight into the real safety and compliance culture at TGW and TT in particuliar?
Were TGW managers asleep on the job, complacent, blasé, incompetent, dysfunctional, not fit for purpose, negligent, inexperienced, arrogant, or distracted? How did TGW’s financial situation / loss making play out? Was TGW/TT sufficiently resourced? How could the Tiger Board supposedly exercising due diligence and corporate governance allow a not insignificant Australian airline’s ( 10 + A320s ) brand, reliability and safety reputation ( and maybe that of the Singapore TR as well ) to be diminished or even destroyed by an AOC suspension? Given the strong links and association with TR in Singapore who continue to fly into Australia for the time being begs the question, are they any better? With a different AOC and regulator, just how do TR in Singapore do things differently to TT in Australia? Why would SIA/SQ as 30 odd per cent shareholders want or need to be associated with this lot?
Looks like the TGW/TT (and maybe including TR) LCC business model needs major surgery as opposed to some cosmetic changes and minor tweaking around the edges.
Safety is no accident, and if you can’t be safe, then be bloody careful!