Fed: Ansett faces test as 40,000 fly home from Easter holidays

AAP General News (Australia)
04-15-2001
Fed: Ansett faces test as 40,000 fly home from Easter holidays

Australian airports are bracing for further chaos tomorrow as Ansett faces a major
test in flying almost 40,000 passengers home from Easter holidays.

Ansett has borrowed aircraft to help it cope with the load after thousands of travellers
experienced long delays and cancellations when its fleet of 10 Boeing 767s was grounded
on Thursday.

The airline's New Zealand-based chief executive GARY TOOMEY has flown in to Australia
to deal with the crisis.

The Civil Aviation Safety Authority grounded the 767s amid safety concerns and has
revealed it is considering grounding Ansett's entire fleet.

CASA aviation safety director MICK TOLLER has told Channel Nine the authority had a
difficult decision to make on Thursday, concerning whether just the 767s or the entire
Ansett fleet was grounded.

He says CASA will keep a close eye on the other aircraft to make sure its judgement was correct.

Ansett senior vice-president of operations Captain TREVOR JENSEN says the grounding
was a shock because Ansett had created a new management team late last year and the new
Ansett-Air New Zealand engineering division had CASA approval.

AAP RTV sal/jtb

KEYWORD: ANSETT (SYDNEY)

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