Medical specialist to launch private airline
Chiang Mai (Mizzima) – Reports say famous liver disease specialist Dr. Khin Maung Win is trying to establish a private airline for operation inside Burma.
It is envisioned that airplanes will be leased from Ukraine, as the doctor continues talks with the Myanmar Airway and Hotel and Tourism Corporation concerning his proposed business venture.
“The planes will be on lease rather than being bought. They’re not for personal use, but for domestic flights. I’ll lease these planes from Ukraine. I’m currently talking with Myanmar Airway and Hotel and Tourism and I think an agreement will be reached within one month,” Dr. Khin Maung Win told Mizzima.
Though he declined to give further details, according to the local weekly ‘Yangon Times’ in Burma, the planes in question can accommodate 18 passengers and will service domestic travel routes and provide ambulatory service for emergency patients and foreign organizations.
The first private airline in Burma, Air Bagan, was established by U Tay Za, a close associate of junta leader Senior General Than Shwe and his family.
Dr. Khin Maung Win will be the first entrepreneur to enter Burma’s aviation business utilizing only small craft.
Having served in the Ministry of Health until 2007, Dr. Khin Maung Win now operates the 30th Street in Rangoon.
While the exact planes being negotiated for are uncertain, the International Aviation Safety Assessment Program categorizes Ukraine as a tier two country regarding air safety. A category 2 country is in turn defined by the Federal Aviation Administration as guilty of not providing safety oversight of its air carrier operators in accordance with the minimum safety oversight standards.
democracy for burma 