Tonga's Civil Aviation Division says it confirmed with an international authority that it properly certified a controversial plane.
New Zealand is disputing the certification of the MA-60, gifted by China, and a soon-to-be-published report by the World Bank also questions the certification process and recommends grounding the plane.
But the CEO of Tonga's Civil Aviation Division, Vili Cocker, says Tonga followed the rules and guidelines from the International Civil Aviation Organisation.
Mr Cocker says ICAO has not issued a Significant Safety Concern and agreed at two different meetings that the plane was legitimately certified.
"They would have already issued one, because they are very aware of the MA60 because we raised it in 2012, in Montreal, and once again, when we were there last year in the 38th assembly, and obviously the regional office in Bangkok is very aware of the MA60 project in Tonga."
The CEO of Tonga's Civil Aviation Division, Vili Cocker.
