Air Moldova was stripped of theair operator certificate, which means that it no longer has the status of air operator and cannot operate commercial flights. The certificate was revoked by the Civil Aviation Authority at the suggestion of the Certification Commission, which found that the operator doesn’t meet the minimum requirements for holding this document, IPN reports.
Previously, the Civil Aviation Authority temporarily suspended the air operator certificate for a period of six months, offering the maximum period provided by the Air Code to identify an aircraft that could be used in air transport. “Upon the expiry of the six-month period, in accordance with the provisions of the Air Code, due to the lack of at least one aircraft holding a valid certificate of airworthiness, the revocation of the AOC was inevitable,” reads a press release of the Authority.
If Air Moldova wants to resume flights, it can initiate a new certification process.
Today, a group of MPs presented a bill stipulating that passengers who bought tickets will be among the first to be refunded if a company becomes insolvent. According to them, the initiative was proposed particularly because over 28,000 citizens didn’t get back their money after purchasing tickets from Air Moldova. It goes to about 75,000 tickets to the value of around €9 million.