PAL says EU ban unfortunate but assures its safety

Flag-carrier Philippine Airlines on Wednesday said its inclusion among carriers blocked from flying into the European Union’s member countries was “unfortunate." However, it assured that the airline complies with international civil aviation safety standards. “PAL laments that the EC decision came about notwithstanding PAL’s safety record, as borne out by its compliance with internationally accepted safety standards," it said in a statement. “PAL would like to assure the riding public that safety remains the bedrock of PAL’s operations. It has always been the flag carrier’s policy to ensure that its passengers fly with the full assurance of safety and comfort," it added. On March 30, the European Commission listed Philippine and Sudanese carriers among the carriers banned from flying to EU member countries. With commission's latest move, there are now 17 countries with airlines banned from entering the 27-nation bloc. Despite this ban, the commission said “it is ready to support the Philippines to overcome serious safety deficiencies." In the Philippines, the ban covers Philippine Airlines and Cebu Pacific Air. PAL is the only licensed Philippine carrier to fly to Europe. Its last commercial flight to the EU was in 1999. Earlier in the day, Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines head Alfonso Cusi similarly denied Philippine carriers were unsafe. On Wednesday, the Philippine Airlines said the ban stemmed from the US Federal Aviation Authority’s downgrading of its safety rating from Category 1 to 2, where the country was labeled as an “unsafe port of origin." Countries that fall under Category 1 are those which comply with aviation safety standards of the International Civil Aviation Organization while those that fall under Category 2 are those that do not. But PAL said it has complied with other internationally-accepted safety standards “including the IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) and audits by major foreign aviation regulatory authorities." Since 2006, the flag-carrier is the only IOSA-certified Philippine carrier, PAL added. PAL also said it welcomed the European Commission’s willingness to help Philippine carriers improve. “PAL welcomes the EC air safety committee’s decision to visit the Philippines so that aside from Philippine aviation regulators, it can also inspect and audit local carriers," it said. - RJAB Jr., GMANews.TV