Apenisa Waqairadovu 
The Joyce Aviation Group says around 100 pilot-training students remain stranded, after the Civil Aviation Authority of Fiji declined to renew the company’s Aircraft Maintenance Organisation Certificate, grounding all training aircraft.
CEO and Managing Director Captain Tim Joyce says the company has already addressed what he calls the “core issues” raised by CAAF including bringing the Cessna 172 back to Nadi, changing key engineering personnel, and completing corrective actions.
But Joyce claims their attempts to resolve the matter have been met with silence.
“We believe all the core issues have been rectified… but despite more than 17 attempts to contact CAAF, we received the shutdown notice after 6pm on Friday.”
Joyce says students doing theory classes are continuing, but all flying students remain stuck because five training aircraft are on the ground awaiting approvals.
He says the company wants the chance to present its corrective action plan in person but claims CAAF has barred its staff from speaking to him directly.
“We are appealing in the interests of fairness not only for I think 100 or so students that are stranded, not only for our charter customers of both helicopter and fixed-wing, but in the interests of the image of Fiji and for investment in Fiji and for confidence in our oversight and regulatory system, that we be allowed to continue operating.”
Joyce Aviation is now pushing for an independent investigation into the process, saying the standoff is affecting students, charter customers, medivac operations, and investor confidence.
CAAF has yet to issue a formal public response to Joyce Aviation’s latest appeal.
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