Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 368/2014 of 10 April 2014 amending Regulation (EC) No 474/2006 establishing the Community list of air carriers which are subject to an operating ban within the Community Text with EEA relevance

• (138) SWACAA has addressed and replied to most of the open PQ (Protocol Questions) and provided support evidence, through the use of ICAO's CMA online tool. The validation of these actions by ICAO is pending and, as a result, the official performance is still the same as in 2007, despite the significant improvements introduced since.

• (139) SWACAA has requested an ICVM for November 2014 in order to have an ICAO validation of the many corrective actions already implemented.

• (140) The Commission and the Air Safety Committee welcomed the commitment of SWACAA to the implementation of the revised CAP, the major steps already achieved, and encouraged SWACAA's efforts towards establishing an aviation system that is fully compliant with ICAO standards.

• (141) In view of the significant reinforcement of the oversight function already achieved, in combination with the inexistence of AOCs and the only slowly developing demand for new AOCs, in accordance with the common criteria, it is assessed that the Kingdom of Swaziland should be removed from the Community list of air carriers which are subject to an operating ban within the Union.

• (142) The Commission and the Air Safety Committee will continue to closely monitor the capability of the SWACAA to fully exercise its oversight responsibility. The Commission and the Air Safety Committee request SWACAA to notify the Commission of each newly issued or modified AOC. Should any relevant safety information indicate that there are imminent safety risks as a consequence of lack of compliance with international safety standards, the Commission would be forced to take action in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 2111/2005.

Air carriers from Yemen

• (143) The official accident investigation report in relation to the air carrier Yemen Airways (Yemenia) accident that occurred on 29 June 2009 at Moroni Comoros Islands was published on 25 June 2013. The report offered three main recommendations: firstly, that the Comorian authorities introduce emergency permanent measures adapted to the research and subsequent salvage of an aircraft accident occurring in the sea near its airfields; secondly, that the Yemeni authorities ensure that all crews performing flights to Moroni are correctly trained for the completion of Visual Manoeuvring with Prescribed Track procedures (MVI); and thirdly, that the Yemeni authorities review the training of Yemenia pilots specifically as regards their ability to react to emergency situations.

• (144) On 7 November 2013, the Yemeni Civil Aviation and Meteorological Authority (CAMA) wrote to the Commission. This letter included some detail of safety actions taken in respect of the accident. The Air Safety Committee was informed of these actions and of associated developments during its meeting in November 2013.

• (145) The Commission organised a technical meeting which took place on 9 January 2014 in Brussels. The Commission, experts from EASA and from Member States, as well as representatives from CAMA and Yemenia, attended the meeting.

• (146) On 17 December 2013, prior to the technical meeting, the Commission sent specific questions to CAMA in respect to not only the accident report, but also CAMA's wider responsibilities regarding safety oversight of air carriers certified in Yemen. The Commission also sent to CAMA a specific set of questions that were to be distributed to Yemenia. Both sets of questions were designed to assist the Commission in assessing the quality of responses by both CAMA and Yemenia to the recommendations contained within the accident report.

• (147) In response to the specific recommendations made towards the Yemeni authorities, CAMA explained that its actions included the intensification of the safety oversight of Yemenia, including an increase in cabin and cockpit inspections and that it had ordered Yemenia to make line and airport qualifications checks for all crews operating to airports categorised as level ‘C’. Additional actions included that CAMA had instructed Yemenia to make ‘Stall and Upset recover’ training more frequently.

• (148) In response to the specific recommendations made towards Yemenia, the air carrier explained that it had implemented Management and Air Operator Certificate Post Holder changes as well as a review and related changes to policy and procedures. Improvements in auditing, training and implementation were also cited. Furthermore, Yemenia re-emphasised its crew emergency procedures training during recurrent simulator training, which was conducted in accordance with the Airbus training syllabus.

• (149) The Air Safety Committee was provided with further detail as to the technical discussions that ensued during the meeting and also provided with a summary of the documentation that had been submitted both by CAMA and Yemenia.

• (150) In accordance with the common criteria, it is assessed that there are at this stage no grounds for amending the Community list of air carriers which are subject to an operating ban within the Union by including air carriers from Yemen. However, the safety performance of all air carriers certified in Yemen, including Yemenia will continue to be closely monitored. Should there be indications that international safety standards are not being met, the Commission would be forced to take action in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 2111/2005.

• (151) Member States will continue to verify the effective compliance with relevant safety standards of air carriers certified in the Yemen through the prioritisation of ramp inspections pursuant to Regulation (EU) No 965/2012.

Air carriers from Zambia

• (152) The Commission informed the Air Safety Committee as regards recent correspondence it had received from the Zambian authorities, including that of a letter of 10 December 2013 from the Ministry of Transport. The letter acknowledged earlier correspondence from the Commission of 1 October 2013 that gave guidance on areas that the authorities should focus on as regards bringing further progress and improvements.

• (153) The letter of 10 December 2013 from the Zambian authorities informed that a Board of Directors had been appointed for its Civil Aviation Authority and that they intended to recruit a Director General of Civil Aviation by 31 January 2014.

• (154) The Commission replied on 21 January 2014 confirming that it wished to maintain a constructive engagement with the Zambian authorities. In this reply, the Commission also suggested that a technical meeting should be arranged when the new Director General of Civil Aviation had been appointed, with a view to gaining information with respect to progress, in order that the Air Safety Committee may be kept fully informed.

• (155) The Commission and the Air Safety Committee noted the continued progress which the Zambian Department of Civil Aviation has made, and encouraged the Zambian authorities to continue, with a view to the current restrictions being reconsidered at the appropriate moment after the necessary verification.

• (156) In accordance with the common criteria, it is therefore assessed that there are at this stage no grounds for amending the Community list of air carriers which are subject to an operating ban within the Union with respect to air carriers from Zambia.

• (157) Article 8(2) of Regulation (EC) No 2111/2005 recognises the need for decisions to be taken swiftly and, where appropriate, urgently, given the safety implications. It is therefore essential, for the protection of sensitive information and for minimising commercial impacts, that the decisions in the context of updating the list of air carriers which are subject to an operating ban or restriction within the Union, are published and enter into force immediately after their adoption.

• (158) Regulation (EC) No 474/2006 should therefore be amended accordingly.

• (159) The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Air Safety Committee,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Regulation (EC) No 474/2006 is amended as follows:

• (1) Annex A is replaced by the text set out in Annex A to this Regulation;

• (2) Annex B is replaced by the text set out in Annex B to this Regulation.

Article 2

This Regulation shall enter into force on the day following its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

Done at Brussels, 10 April 2014.

For the Commission,

On behalf of the President,

Joaquín ALMUNIA

Vice-President

ANNEX A

LIST OF AIR CARRIERS OF WHICH ALL OPERATIONS ARE SUBJECT TO A BAN WITHIN THE EU, WITH EXCEPTIONS ¹⁰

ANNEX B

LIST OF AIR CARRIERS OF WHICH OPERATIONS ARE SUBJECT TO OPERATIONAL RESTRICTIONS WITHIN THE EU ¹¹