Tue, Jun 21, 2016
Had Been The Country's First Sharia-Compliant Airline
The government of Malaysia has permanently grounded Rayani Air, the country's first sharia-compliant airline after only a few months of operation.
The airline was founded in January, 2015, and began flying regularly scheduled service in December last year. The airline did not serve any alcoholic beverages, and followed Islamic dietary laws. Prayers were said prior to every flight, and female crewmembers were required to wear hijabs.
Non-Muslim passengers were able to buy tickets on the airline's two Boeing 737-400 aircraft operating between its base in the Langkawi archipelago on Malaysia’s east coast to Kuala Lumpur and the northern Malaysian city of Kota Bahru, but female passengers were required to wear "modest" clothing when traveling with the airline.
Fox News reports that the carrier was never able to consistently offer reliable service. There were numerous complaints from passengers about flight delays and late cancellations. Pilots went on strike over wages, and passengers said they had in some cases been handed hand-written boarding passes, which led to serious security concerns.
The government of Malaysia opened an investigation into Rayani Air in April, and last week it announced that the airline's air operator certificate had been revoked. Azharuddin Abdul Rahman, the director general of Malaysia's Department of Aviation, said that the revocation was done because “safety and security of the aviation industry is of paramount importance." A separate statement from the Malaysian Aviation Commission indicated that the carrier “had breached the conditions of its Air Service Licence and lacks the financial and management capacity to continue operating as a commercial airline.”
The commission said that any passenger who had already purchased a ticket on Rayani Air could file a complaint with the airline and request a refund.
Rayani Air founder Ravi Alagendrran said the revocation came in the middle of negotiations with investors to purchase the carrier because the "present owners and their management are no longer fit to revive the airline."
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