The FAA has taken emergency action against Paradigm Air Operators, of Dallas, Texas, revoking the company’s operating certificate. The agency alleges that Paradigm conducted illegal charter flights using pilots who were not qualified for Part 135 operations, and lacking appropriate management and safety personnel.
Paradigm’s current operating certificate had allowed it to operate flights that were not held out to the public—known as “common carriage”—and fly “non-common carriage and private carriage operations, which the FAA considers providing air transportation services for one or several selected customers, generally on a long-term basis,” according to the release on the FAA site.
“Nevertheless, the FAA alleges Paradigm between June 2013 and March 2018 conducted at least 34 unauthorized, common carriage charter flights using its two Boeing 757 and one Boeing 737 aircraft,” the FAA stated. “Customers on these flights included the Arizona Diamondbacks, Cleveland Indians, Oakland Athletics and Texas Rangers baseball teams, and the New York Rangers and Toronto Maple Leafs National hockey teams.” For 28 of those flights, commissions were paid by Paradigm to a consultant, to the tune of $101,320. For six additional flights, Paradigm took payments totaling $652,500.
Paradigm had casted the flights as demo flights for prospective buyers, when in reality it was compensated for them. It faced a fine of $13,669 each day it failed to surrender the certificate. The company’s site, paradigmair.com, was password protected at press time.
