European Commission updates the European list of banned carriers

European Commission adopted (04-Dec-2012) the 20th update of the European list of air carriers which are subject to an operating ban or operational restrictions within the EU. Because of important safety concerns, air carriers certified in Eritrea have been added to the list. Following improvement in the safety situation in Mauritania, all air carriers certified in the country have been removed from the list. The same was true for the Jordan carrier Jordan Aviation. Progress was also noted in Libya, but Libyan authorities agreed that Libyan carriers would not be permitted to operate to Europe until they are fully recertified to the satisfaction of the Commission. The European air safety list was also updated to remove certain carriers which ceased to exist or to add new carriers recently created in a number of countries: the Republic of Congo, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Honduras, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Philippines, and Rwanda. As a consequence, no carriers of Rwanda and of Honduras are mentioned on the list anymore. Finally, the Commission recognised efforts of the safety oversight authorities of Aruba, Indonesia, Libya, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Madagascar, Philippines and Russia to reform the civil aviation system and notably to improve safety to guarantee that international safety standards are effectively and consistently applied. The Commission is ready to provide active further support for these reforms in cooperation with ICAO, EU member states and EASA, in order to help some of these countries to get off the list when the safety situation will have further improved. [more - original PR]