Malaysia’s Rayani Air has had its Air Operator Certificate (AOC) suspended for a period of three months, effective 11 April 2016 as a result of the carrier’s failure to meet safety and service standards, according to a Bernama news agency report.

Rayani Air became one of only four Muslim shariah-compliant airlines – including Royal Brunei Airlines, Saudia and IranAir – in the world and touted itself as a carrier which offers assurance to Muslim travelers of upholding religious values. All meals offered were strictly halal, alcohol was not served, female flight attendants wore hijabs, and Islamic prayers were recited before each flight.

The airline has been plagued by flight delays and cancellations, staff have reportedly not bean paid for some time and it was recently revealed that passengers were being issued hand-written boarding passes.  The airline had been issued several warnings prior to the suspension, Malaysia’s Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) said and with this suspension now has three months to address the DCA’s concerns.

“The suspension will be lifted if they fulfil all of our requirements or we can permanently suspend, or take a longer time. Three months is provisional. We have discussed with the airline and they know about it. It’s up to them to improve,” Bernama reported the DCA’s director-general, Azharuddin Abdul Rahman, as saying.  He added that this is the first time Malaysia has suspended an airline’s AOC under the current regulations, which came into force in 1996.

Rayani Air grounded all its flights on Friday until further notice, citing a pilot strike. It has been operating to five Malaysian destinations: Kuala Lumpur, Langkawi, Kota Bharu, Kota Kinabalu and Kuching.