Swiss regional carrier Darwin Air has been grounded.
The Swiss Federal Office of Civil Aviation (FOCA) announced
the suspension of Darwin's operating license on Tuesday, one day after the
carrier filed for insolvency. The move, said FOCA, was undertaken for "economic
reasons."
In a brief statement on its website, Darwin said the suspension
is temporary.
"We are working on a solution to restart operations
soon. Please check our website for updates," the carrier said.
Darwin's Monday insolvency filing came only four months
after its purchase by a Swiss subsidiary of the Slovenian carrier Adria
Airways. Among Darwin's former owners was Etihad, which owned one-third of the
company. Darwin was operating as Etihad Regional prior to the July ownership
change.
Darwin is the third airline in which Etihad had invested to
go into insolvency this year. Alitalia filed for insolvency in May but is still
operating. Air Berlin, which ceased operations at the end of October, entered
into insolvency in August. Etihad owned a 29.2% stake in Air Berlin and 49% of
Alitalia.
Darwin operated a fleet of 10 regional aircraft between Rome,
Geneva and Lugano, Switzerland.