Maldives Civil Aviation Authority (MCAA) announced that the Civil Aviation Authority of United Kingdom (UK CAA) is to review the helicopter regulatory oversight capability as part of efforts to resume helicopter operations.
Last year, the Minister of Tourism, Moosa Zameer announced that the government is working to resume commercial helicopter services, pending amendments to regulations.
In a statement, MCAA said that the review will involve a full risk assessment of helicopter operations. The statement read that the UK CAA experts will support MCAA and AOC Accountable Managers to establish the intentions of the operations and recommend how these operations can be achieved safely. The project will also involve an offshore helideck review, to provide a complete risk picture of future helicopter operations, according to the statement.
Helicopter operations ceased on the Maldives fifteen years ago, following two fatal accidents involving Hummingbird Island Helicopters and Maldivian Air Taxi. Both operators transitioned to all-fixed-wing aircraft in late 1999, and merged in 2013 under Trans Maldivian Airways (TMA), which is now the world's largest Twin Otter operator.