The European Commission added all airlines certified in Armenia to the EU Air Safety List, essentially banning them from flying in the European skies.
The airlines were banned due to the lack of safety oversight capabilities in the country, the European Commission (EC) said. The decision was made after hearing out six Armenian airlines and the country’s Civil Aviation Committee.
While the country’s air carriers, including Armenia Airways, Atlantis Arenian Airlines, Atlantis European Airways and others, are banned from operating within the European Union, an exception is possible. If an airline is using a wet-leased aircraft of a non-banned air carrier, it could be permitted traffic rights.
The EU already applies similar measures to airlines from Afghanistan, Angola (two airlines are exempt from the ban), Congo (Brazzaville), Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Liberia, Libya, Nepal, Sao Tome and Principe, Sierra Leone, Sudan. The list also includes one country in Europe ‒ Moldova (three country’s airlines are exempt from the ban).
The European Commission announced the newest revisions of the Safety List on June 2, 2020. Following the update, a total of 96 airlines are banned from EU skies, most of them (90 airlines in 16 states) are banned because safety oversight by their countries’ aviation authorities is deemed inadequate.
Six airlines (Avior Airlines, Venezuela; Blue Wing Airlines, Suriname; Iran Aseman Airlines, Iran; Iraqi Airways, Iraq; Med-View Airlines, Nigeria; and Air Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe) are banned based on serious safety deficiencies identified. Three more airlines (Air Service Comores, the Comoros; Iran Air, Iran; and Air Koryo, North Korea) can only fly to the EU with specific aircraft types.