Air Madagascar joins listFOR the second time in two weeks, the umbrella body for African airlines, African Airlines Association (AFRAA), has faulted the European Union (EU) for unilaterally blacklisting some of the continents carriers.This is coming on the heels of a fresh ban on Air Madagascars two B767 aircraft, the only two airplanes capable of operating to Europe.The EU had penultimate week slammed a ban on over 26 airlines from Africa, including LAM Mozambique, prompting AFRAA to petition Africa Union (AU) and Africa Civil Aviation Commission (AFCAC) to intervene in what it described as a ploy to systematically prevent African airlines from European airspace.The Secretary General of AFRAA, Dr. Elijah Chingosho, in a statement made available to The Guardian from Nairobi, Kenya, said the EUs imposition of a ban on Air Madagascars two B767 aircraft, the only two aircraft capable of operating to Europe, was a major setback to the airline and the country.He explained that the partial ban came at a time when Mozambique was also put on the list of banned states consequently affecting the operations of all airlines registered in the country.Chingosho noted that Madagascars tourism industry, which had already been smarting under various sanctions imposed by some states due to the political situation in the country, would further suffer.According to him, Air Madagascar has an excellent safety record which few airlines worldwide can boast of. The airline is IOSA registered and adopts industry best practices in safety, security and quality.He disclosed that statistics from the Flight Safety Foundation showed that the carrier had never had an accident in the last 25 years.The EU practice of partial or full blacklisting has caused greater damage beyond the targeted airlines with tremendous economic and financial difficulties to the countries concerned and its people while it makes no practical contribution to aviation safety.The AFRAA chief lamented that the unilateral nature of the decision to ban with its attendant lack of transparency, prior consultation and the absolute absence of representation of those concerned, throws serious doubt as to its fairness as well as its impartiality.To him, the practice appears to be prone to manipulation for political and economic interest.This is because the net beneficiaries from the barring of states and/or airlines so far have been EU carriers as they step in to capitalise on the vacuum create,he said.A blacklisting not only bans affected airlines operation into EU destinations but also has adverse effects on their operations to other cities outside Europe as ticket sales of the airlines in EU countries dwindle and codeshare/interline partners withdraw their tickets and limit their cooperation.He, however, called on African governments, AFCAC and the AU to take a firm action on the growing number of African states on the EU list of banned airlines and to also engage the European Commission in a consensual dialogue aimed at establishing mutually agreed criteria for improving safety on the continent.AFRAA is a trade organisation of airlines from the member states of the AU. Founded in Accra, Ghana in April 1968, and now headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya, AFRAAs primary purpose is to foster commercial and technical cooperation among African airlines and to represent their common interests.
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