Skytrans CEO Alan Milne thrilled services to Torres Strait to take to the air again after CASA OK
Skytrans has been given the all-clear to resume flights into the Torres Strait Islands, after regulation changes forced the suspension of services in November.
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Cairns airline Skytrans has been given the all-clear to resume flights into the Torres Strait Islands, after regulation changes forced the suspension of services in November.
Flights into Murray Island resumed on Monday, with operations into Mabuiag and Darnley Islands will follow soon.
Flights will eventually resume to all islands via Horn Island.
The airline cited “operational restrictions” when suspending flights to Murray, Darnley and Mabuiag islands in November last year.
Skytrans CEO Alan Milne said the Civil Aviation Safety Authority had been updating regulations and aligning them to world safety standards.
He said the new regulations were more restrictive for takeoff and landing, meaning they temporarily could not take passengers or even payloads.
“We put forward a safety case to CASA, that based on past history we’d never had an incident in 30 years, they’re high performance aeroplanes,” Mr Milne said.
“We put all that in a safety case and they review it and eventually came back with their ruling.
“Sometimes little niggles can come through, but it was a good operation for CASA and Skytrans to explore what we can do, it took a lot longer than we expected.”
He saw it as a positive that Skytrans will now be operating under the latest world-standard legislation.
“This is a great example of outcome-based legislation where the regulator acknowledges the
expertise and internal capability of Skytrans and builds on the 30-plus years Skytrans has been operating in the Torres Strait and Cape York region.”
Mr Milne said it had been a collaborative effort to restore flights.
“We are so happy to be able to bring the people of the Torres Strait together along with other islands and connect them to Horn Island and Cairns.
“Without the support of the Torres Strait Islands Regional Council, specifically their CEO James William, these services would still be grounded.”
He said it had been a challenging time for communities that have not been able to travel safely and efficiently with the region’s only scheduled air service.
“Due to the combined efforts of the council, CASA and Skytrans, we know we are even better placed into the future to continue flying in what has always been our spiritual home.”
Skytrans also announced they are introducing another Cessna C208 Caravan aircraft to their fleet to provide more connectivity for the residents of the Torres Strait.
“Our investment in another Cessna C208 Caravan for the Skytrans fleet has allowed us to increase the number of flights and routes available to the communities as we look to further our presence in the region,” he said.
Co-owned by NRL legend Johnathan Thurston, Skytrans continues a strong growth trajectory providing for valuable employment in the Cairns, Cape York and the Torres Strait regions.
“It’s onwards and upwards now,” Mr Milne said.
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Originally published as Skytrans CEO Alan Milne thrilled services to Torres Strait to take to the air again after CASA OK
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