Thai-registered airlines have been spared from a ban on operating in European Union (EU) airspace as the European Commission (EC) did not impose any new curbs on airlines in its latest EU Air Safety List released Thursday.
Only airlines from the Philippines, banned since 2010, have been removed from the list and are therefore now allowed to operate in EU airspace.
The EC's decision was based on the unanimous opinion of the EU Air Safety Committee, which met between June 9-11.
The EU Air Safety Committee consists of aviation safety experts from the 28 member states of the EU, Norway, Iceland, Switzerland as well as from the European Aviation Safety Agency.
Transport Minister ACM Prajin Juntong welcomed the decision.
He said it showed the agency understands Thailand is determined to address aviation safety concerns.
ACM Prajin said he was confident checks by the US Federal Aviation Administration next month would pose no problems either.
However, he said the Transport Ministry and Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) still have much work ahead of them to solve several safety concerns raised by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).
The Transport Ministry had given the DCA until Thursday to improve safety certification for Thai-registered airlines - one of the aviation worries raised by ICAO.
ACM Prajin previously said the DCA's corrective action plan to ease those worries had to be reviewed by Thursday.
Three problems were identified: a delay in preparing aviation safety inspection manuals; shortages of qualified personnel to carry out inspections of airlines, and a lack of personnel trained in line with the ICAO's requirements, ACM Prajin said.
ACM Prajin said the department is stepping up efforts to prepare for the inspection and certification of 28 new airlines.
The DCA chief has already approved aviation safety inspection manuals to train the department's personnel to inspect and certify the new airlines, he said.
He added the department will also ask the ICAO to send experts to help with inspection and certification.
The ICAO has "red-flagged" Thailand for "significant safety concerns" over air safety.
The announcement was made on the ICAO's website last Thursday after a 90-day deadline to improve safety standards expired.
The concerns were raised when the ICAO carried out an audit of the department's performance earlier this year.
The DCA, which plays a key role in regulating aviation businesses and granting Air Operator Certificates, failed to meet aviation safety standards, according to the ICAO's audit of the department's performance.