EU to decide on RI air travel ban in November

Alvin Darlanika Soedarjo, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The EU will decide on whether to lift the air travel ban for Indonesian airlines in November after a recent preliminary meeting between an Indonesian delegation and EU officials in Montreal, Canada.

"The meeting was a technical one. It involved our clarification on aviation safety documents as requested by the EU. So there is no decision yet from Montreal," Transportation Minister Jusman Syafii Djamal said Monday as quoted by Detik.com newsportal.

Speaking after a meeting with the House of Representatives Commission V overseeing transportation issues, Jusman said Director General of Air Transport Budhi M. Suyitno and National Team for the Evaluation of Transportation Safety and Security chief Chappy Hakim led the Indonesian delegation.

The meeting was held on the sidelines of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) general assembly with the EU represented by its safety committee consisting of France, Germany, the Netherlands, Italy and Spain.

On July 6, the EU prohibited all Indonesian air carriers from entering European airspace, despite the fact that at the time there were no Indonesian airlines that flew to European destinations.

Jusman added the Indonesian delegation also presented the ministry's plan for zero accidents and policy on local airlines compliance ratings.

"In the meeting, I addressed the Indonesian government's disappointment on the EU flight restriction. We believe if the ban is to be continued, then there would be unhealthy air transportation competition.

"Several countries can simply give sanctions without coordination with the affected country," he said.

Indonesia also proposed that the ICAO regulate the mechanism on such bans and lift the restriction.

"All ICAO members should use the same standard. That way there will be no one-sided decisions."

Jusman said Garuda Indonesia, which had planned to resume its service to the Netherlands just before the ban, should be exempt from the ban as it is Indonesia's flag carrier.

The Indonesian government had called on the EU to send its technical delegates to directly inspect Indonesian airlines.

The Saudi Arabian General Authority on Civil Aviation (GACA) in July planned to join the EU in banning Indonesian airlines from flying to the country.

However, the GACA sent a team of technical delegates to Indonesia and cleared Garuda in August. Garuda is the only Indonesian airline serving routes to Saudi Arabia.

Several local major airlines, including Garuda, have attempted to highlight their improvements by obtaining official certification through an operational safety audit from the International Air Transport Association.