The European Commission has issued a press release, according to which 21 Russian airlines are included in the “black list” of air safety. The reason is that the company’s planes do not meet “international safety standards”. The reason for the latter is the “air sanctions” imposed on Russia.
The EU has expressed “serious concerns about safety due to the forced re-registration of foreign aircraft in Russia, which knowingly allows their operation without valid certificates of airworthiness.” “This is a violation of international aviation safety standards,” the European Commission said.
The full list of companies is as follows:
- Aeroflot;
- “Victory”;
- “Russia”;
- Utair;
- Smartavia;
- Nord Wind;
- NordStar;
- Ural Airlines;
- Siberian Airlines;
- “Izhavia”;
- “Yakutia”;
- Aurora Airlines;
- “Aviastar-TU”;
- Rusjet;
- “YUVT aero”;
- “IrAero”;
- Alrosa Airlines;
- Rusline;
- “Yamal.”
- Icarus Airlines;
- Skil (the last airline was blacklisted in November 2021).
Transport Commissioner Adina Valean commented on the decision: “Rosaviatsia has allowed Russian airlines to operate hundreds of foreign aircraft without a valid airworthiness certificate. Relevant Russian airlines have deliberately done so in violation of relevant international safety standards. This is not only a clear violation of the Convention on International Civil Aviation (Chicago Convention), but also poses an immediate threat to flight safety. At the same time, the European official did not forget to state that this decision, it turns out, “is not another sanction against Russia” and “was made solely on the basis of technical and security considerations.” “We do not confuse security with politics,” she said.