On 2 June, the European Commission banned all seven airlines registered in Armenia from carrying out regular flights to EU member states, saying that they do not meet international safety standards, reported arka.am.
The European Commission has updated the EU Air Safety List, according to which all airlines certified in Armenia are now not allowed to make flights to EU countries, except for emergency and humanitarian flights, as well as flights operated for medical purposes. The airlines were placed on this list after evaluating security controls. The decision was made after a hearing with the Civil Aviation Committee of Armenia and six Armenian airlines.
"According to the decision of the European Commission and the European Aviation Safety Agency, the reason for the decision to include Armenian certified airlines in the EU aviation safety list is the inadequate supervision by the Civil Aviation Committee of Armenia for many years and the implementation of incomplete certification functions," Armenia’s Civil Aviation Committee posted on its Facebook page.
The department stressed that certified foreign airlines in Armenia will continue to fly to other countries, and the decision to ban flights to EU countries will not have any impact on flights from Europe to Armenia and back by other airlines.
Following the EU's decision, Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan chaired an online meeting to discuss the current situation and prospects for the development of the country's civil aviation with Armenia’s chairperson of the Civil Aviation Committee Tatevik Revazyan. Revazyan said that the European Commission may revise its decision in November 2022.
As for Pashinyan, he stated that the Civil Aviation Committee should work out a roadmap and a schedule for its implementation in a short time. According to Pashinyan, it is necessary to take measures not only to increase the level of flight safety, but also to increase the competitiveness of local aviation and develop home civil aviation.
The EU’s Aviation Safety Agency is understood to have recommended the ban in November last year, because of what it views as the Armenian Civil Aviation Committee’s failure to ensure adequate oversight and licensing of the domestic airlines. The move sparked bitter recriminations between the Armenian government and its political opponents. The latter seized it to accuse the government of incompetence and mismanagement. Pashinyan dismissed the accusations and put the blame on the country’s former leadership, saying that it had for years failed to properly regulate the aviation sector (Caucasus Watch reported).
