The EU added Air Tanzania to the list of airlines subject to an operating ban within the European Union, in its update Friday list to the EU Air Safety List.
The basis for this decision is safety concerns identified by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), which have also led to the decision not to grant Air Tanzania a Third Country Operator (TCO) authorisation.
Following the update, a total of 129 airlines are now banned from EU skies:
- 100 airlines certified in 15 States, due to inadequate safety oversight by the aviation authorities from these States;
- 22 airlines certified in Russia, as well as 7 individual airlines from other States, based on serious safety deficiencies identified: Air Tanzania (Tanzania), Air Zimbabwe (Zimbabwe), Avior Airlines (Venezuela), Blue Wing Airlines (Suriname), Iran Aseman Airlines (Iran), Fly Baghdad (Iraq) and Iraqi Airways (Iraq).
EASA decided on 29 November to lift the Third Country Operator (TCO) suspensions imposed on Pakistan International Airlines (PIA). Since the TCO Authorisation was suspended in 2020, PIA and the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA) have improved safety performance and oversight capabilities, and PIA is now allowed to resume operations to the EU. Another Pakistani airline, Airblue Limited, has also received EASA’s TCO Authorisation.
Two additional airlines are subject to operational restrictions and can only fly to the EU with specific aircraft types: Iran Air (Iran) and Air Koryo (North Korea).
The update to the EU Air Safety List is based on the unanimous opinion of Member State aviation safety experts, who met in Brussels on 19 to 21 November 2024 under the auspices of the EU Air Safety Committee.