Passenger charter operator Air Taxi Vanuatu (Port Vila) has had its Part 135 operating certificate suspended after a second crash this year resulted in a fatality, according to the Australian Broadcasting Commission (ABC).

On July 15, a Britten-Norman BN-2, YJ-AT2 (msn 609), carrying five people, crashed into coconut trees on a plantation near Port Vila Airport, with one person later dying as a result. Local news outlets reported the pilot saying that the aircraft, coming in from Tanna, faced some "technical issues" and that there were strong headwinds before the crash.

In January, another Islander - Y2-AL3 (msn 320) - and carrying eight people crashed into bushes during an aborted take-off at Sola. While there were no casualties, the aircraft was badly damaged. Air Taxi's third Islander, Y2-AL1 (646), was operating up to this week's incident.

"Under the Vanuatu Civil Aviation Act No. 16 of 1999, Part 3, Section 18, sub-section (4), which grants power to the Director, Acting Director of CAAV, Wilfred Makaba, has suspended Air Taxi Limited’s Part 135 Certificate pending the investigation of the plane crash involving one of Air Taxi Limited’s planes,” a Civil Aviation Authority of Vanuatu statement reads. “The suspension of Air Taxi’s operations is to allow an independent investigation to take place, following the requirements under International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) Standard Annex 13 and in accordance with the rules of Vanuatu Civil Aviation.”

ch-aviation has contacted Air Taxi Vanuatu for comment.

The ABC's Pacific Beat programme reported this week that the two remaining local charter carriers, Belair Airways and Unity Airlines (Port Vila), have four aircraft between them, the biggest of these with a maximum capacity of nine passengers. After a brief grounding while their safety certificates were checked, they are back flying and reportedly doing brisk business with Vanuatu experiencing an acute shortage of capacity.

Vanuatu's state-owned airline, Air Vanuatu (NF, Port Vila), which normally operates international and domestic flights, ceased all flights in early May and went into administration. It has not yet resumed flying.