ArmInfo. Air carriers that have received certificates in Armenia are included in the list of the European Commission for Aviation Safety of the EU. The restricted list includes all companies certified in RA: Aircompany Armenia, Armenia Airways, Armenian Helicopters, Atlantis Armenian Airlines, Atlantis European Airways, Mars Avia, Skyball.
According to a report on the website of the European Commission, the European Commission today once again updated the European list of airlines subject to prohibitions or operational restrictions in the European Union, known as the "EU Flight Safety List", The structure emphasized that the Commission seeks to ensure the highest level of flight safety for all passengers traveling in the EU.
"After today's update, all the airlines certified in Armenia were added to the list after further assessing the country's capabilities in the field of flight safety control. This decision was made after hearing the reports of the Civil Aviation Committee of Armenia and six Armenian air carriers," the European statement says commission.
"The EU safety list should be considered as a tool to help airlines and countries on the list review and improve their flight standards. The decision to include Armenian carriers in the EU safety list was made on the basis of the unanimous opinion of the Safety Committee. With the assistance of the European Union Aviation Safety Agency, it is ready to cooperate and invest in Armenia to improve aviation safety, "said EU Transport Commissioner Adina Valean, quoted in an EU statement.
According to the report, the EU aviation safety list not only ensures the maintenance of a high level of security in the EU, but also helps airlines to increase flight safety. The list has also become an important preventive tool, as it encourages countries with security problems to take appropriate measures before it becomes necessary to include them in this list.
After the last update, the list includes 96 airlines that are prohibited from using the airspace of the European Union.
It is noted that 90 airlines are certified in 16 states (Afghanistan, Angola (excluding 2 airlines), Armenia, Congo (Brazzaville), Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Liberia, Libya, Moldova (excluding out of 3 airlines), Nepal, Sao Tome and Principe, Sierra Leone and Sudan) - due to inadequate control of aviation security by these states.
In addition, six individual airlines were identified with serious security flaws: Avior Airlines (Venezuela), Blue Wing Airlines (Suriname), Iran Aseman Airlines (Iran), Iraqi Airlines (Iraq), Med-View Airlines (Nigeria) ) and Air Zimbabwe (Zimbabwe).
It is also noted that three more airlines are subject to operational restrictions and can only fly to the EU with certain types of aircraft: Air Service Comores (Comoros), Iran Air (Iran) and Air Koryo (North Korea). In conclusion, it is noted that today's update of the Safety List is based on the unanimous opinion of safety experts from the Member States who met on 12-14 May 2020 under the auspices of the EU Aviation Safety Committee (ASC) via video conference. This committee is chaired by the European Commission with the support of the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). The update also received support from the Transport Committee of the European Parliament. The assessment is carried out in accordance with international safety standards, in particular, standards adopted by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). The Commission is constantly looking for ways to improve safety, in particular thanks to the joint efforts of aviation authorities around the world to raise global safety standards. Earlier, information was circulated in a number of Armenian media that the international aviation organization revoked the license of the State Civil Aviation Committee of Armenia, which could have very disastrous consequences for the entire civil aviation of Armenia, in particular for pilots who could simply be forbidden to board the helm.
At that time the State Civil Aviation Administration informed that between February 3 and 7, experts from the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) made an evaluation visit to two small Armenian airlines (Armenia Aircompany and Atlantis European Airlines) and the State Aviation Administration. "On March 6, preliminary evaluation results were received from EASA and the agency expects to receive the opinion of the State Committee of Civil Aviation, after which the final report on Armenia will be released. Thus, the observations made by EASA will be sent to the Committee on April 6," the GUGA emphasized, this recalling that on May 12-14 in Brussels are scheduled hearings to which representatives of the Committee are invited.
At the same time, the State Civil Aviation Administration recognized that the Committee actually had problems, which were repeatedly mentioned, and which did not arise yesterday, and it will take time to completely modernize the structure, and radical steps are already being taken in this direction.