Airline operators are finally having their say on the laundry list of serious allegations recently made by dozens of pilots, and according to Sky Bahamas CEO and President Captain Randy Butler the accusations are far from the truth, particularly as it concerns safety issues.

Speaking on behalf of several charter airline operators throughout the country, Captain Butler said that aviation in The Bahamas is safe and it is evident by the many years Bahamians have been flying safely.

"This issue of safety concerns is not a real one," he said.

Mr. Butler, a former regulator in the aviation industry, said he knows the ins and outs of safety regulations throughout the industry.

"I don’t believe that there is an operator that will allow his money, his life, his livelihood to be put at risk by not following safety regulations," he explained.

"We have a relationship with the public. The public comes to us with trust that when they pay us we will put them on a safe airplane and get them wherever and back safely."

Responding to pilots’ claims of poor treatment like being overworked, underpaid and not having their national insurance paid, Captain Butler said he has no idea why pilots would make such far-fetched accusations.

"I am a pilot myself and so are many of the other operators and we know how important it is to take care of our people, not only our pilots, but all of our staff," he said.

One of the main concerns raised by pilots is the issue of being overworked, and many said they are forced to fly even when they are exhausted.

But, Captain Butler said many pilots control how many hours they work a day.

"Pilots have to come to an agreement to work 40 hours in four days and take three days off. In most cases that is what the schedule has been and that was something that was widely agreed upon by pilots," he said.

"Whether he’s [the pilot] tired or not, those are things that pilots need to determine. I don’t know those things. All they have to do is tell me that they’re tired and can’t do it and that’s the end of that. "

When asked why he thinks so many pilots would come together and make the same serious accusations, Captain Butler said they are probably disgruntled and not "looking at the bigger picture."

"Some people have personal issues and without looking at the bigger picture they are trying to get back at us. One of the pilots who is leading this situation, for example, has not worked in the industry for nine plus months. He was fired for personal reasons and has no idea what has been going on in any of the companies," he revealed.

The CEO said that above all he is disappointed that pilots did not speak with their supervisors before taking their issues to the media.

"If there are specific concerns please come and tell me. You would find that any of us [operators] would respond to them. If there’s something going on in my company that I don’t know about then someone should bring it to my attention and I will take care of it right away," he urged.

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