The Tribune

By EARYEL BOWLEG

ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

BAHAMASAIR Chairman Tommy Turnquest has confirmed the resignation of the airline's director of maintenance, Prince Storr.

Mr Turnquest said Mr Storr resigned on Monday and the airline is looking internally to fill the vacancy. He confirmed that Mr. Storr will be compensated for his over 30 years of loyalty to the company.

"When people resign, you got to deal with it," the chairman said. "So, it's the role of executive management and the board to ensure that you know Bahamasair has a fully functioning maintenance department headed by a director of maintenance and that's what we're about to do to find a successor."

Word of Mr Storr's resignation came out this week after Progressive Liberal Party Leader Philip Davis addressed the matter on Monday.

While the reason behind the resignation is unclear, in a press statement, Mr David called Mr Storr's "sudden" departure "highly suspicious" following three Bahamasair planes being blocked entering the US because the airline had not complied with a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) rule.

"The policy failure rests with the Bahamasair minister and board chairman," Mr Davis said. "It would be very unfortunate if their actions played any part in Mr Storr's resignation. Our hope is that Bahamasair properly compensates Mr Storr in a manner commensurate with his years of service, seniority and in line with established company policies and practices."

Back in 2010, FAA required all aircraft to be equipped with ADS-B avionics by January 1, 2020. However, the airline had difficulty getting the necessary kits for 737-500 planes by the deadline. Mr Turnquest had previously told The Tribune that Bahamasair discovered it had been given a waiver but was unaware of the stipulations. He said the problem is expected to be resolved by January 31 .