Almost two weeks after a Cuban Airlines plane crashed just after take-off for a domestic flight in Cuba killing more than one hundred people, the Chairman of the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority, Lawrence London, believes Guyana should have done more to raise its concern over the plane and its operations with the International Civil Aviation body.
Although the cause of the crash is still unknown, just over a year ago, Guyana banned the same aircraft from operating in Guyana after it was found to be breaching several safety procedures and practices.
Today, Mr. London said “while we were able to to prevent it from happening over Guyana, maybe we should have done a little bit more, through ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organisaiton), to prevent it from happening period. And that is something we will look at”.
GCAA Director – Lawrence London
He added that the GCAA’s relationship with the international body must be more robust since the ICAO has given Guyana good support and Guyana must return that support.
Director General of the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority, Egbert Field, explained that the issue with the aircraft was initially raised by a citizen and once it go to his desk, an investigation was launched.
That investigation revealed that the Mexican crew of the aircraft was allowing the overloading of the plane in the cabin itself, with walkways being blocked and even the washrooms being used to store bags.
He said during a late night operation, an entire cart of cargo had to be removed from the aircraft so that it could be at its prescribed weight.
Asked by News Source whether sanctions could be taken against the handling companies, Mr. Field explained that Airport handlers do not currently fall under the GCAA but it is an issue the authority will have to look at, since it is all related to aviation security.
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