EU takes Garuda Indonesia off aviation safety blacklist

The European Commission announced Tuesday that it had taken Garuda Airlines and three other Indonesian carriers off its aviation blacklist after air transport authorities addressed safety concerns.

A Garuda Airlines plane taxies while another is parked at the Soekarno Hata International airport in Jakarta. The European Commission announced Tuesday that it had taken Garuda Airlines and three other Indonesian carriers off its aviation blacklist after air transport authorities addressed safety concerns.

"Significant improvements and accomplishments of the Indonesian civil aviation authority are recognised in the area of safety," the EU's executive arm said in a statement.

"Four air carriers -- Garuda Indonesia, Airfast Indonesia, Mandala Airlines and Prime Air -- can be taken off the list, because their authority ensures that they respect the international safety standards."

The European Union banned all Indonesian-registered aircraft from flying over its airspace in June 2007, acting on a report from the International Civil Aviation Organization which criticised the country's safety standards.

The EU ban followed a number of air crashes, including an Adam Air jet that plunged into the sea off Sulawesi island on January 1, 2007, killing all 102 on board.

A Garuda jet crashed in Central Java in March the same year, with 21 dead.

The EU's blacklist, which is regularly updated, contains the names of some 200 airlines or firms of concern which are either banned from operating in Europe or only allowed under strict restrictions.

Most of the airlines targeted operate out of Africa, mainly in Angola, Benin, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Swaziland.

Some of them do not operate in Europe, but their inclusion on it is harmful for business, according to industry experts.