UK Air Safety List
Read about the UK Air Safety List to check which countries and airlines cannot fly planes to, from or in the UK
The UK Air Safety List is the published list of countries and airlines that are subject to an operating ban on safety grounds and so cannot fly planes to, from or within the UK.
When choosing who to fly with, we advise you to take into consideration whether an airline is:
- on the Air Safety List
- certified in any of the countries on the list
You should also check foreign travel advice before you travel abroad.
Afghanistan
All air carriers certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of Afghanistan are banned from operating commercial air services to, from, and within the United Kingdom. Carriers include but are not limited to the following:
- Ariana Afghan Airlines
- Kam Air
Angola
Other than the exceptions listed below, all air carriers certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of Angola are banned from operating commercial air services to, from, and within the United Kingdom. Carriers include but are not limited to the following:
- Aerojet
- Air Jet
- Bestfly Aircraft
- Guicango
- Heliang
- Sjl
Permitted air carriers within Angola
These air carriers certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of Angola are exempt from the restrictions and are permitted to operate into, within or out of the airspace of the United Kingdom:
-
Taag-Linhas Aereas De Angola, S.A. dba Taag- Angola Airlines
-
Heli Malongo Aviacao e Servicos De Angola, LDA dba Heli-Malongo
Armenia
All air carriers certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of Armenia are banned from operating commercial air services to, from, and within the United Kingdom. Carriers include but are not limited to the following:
- Aircompany Armenia
- Armenia Airways
- Armenia Helicopters
- Atlantis Armenian Airlines
- Atlantis European Airways
- Mars Avia
- Skyball
Comoros
The following air carrier certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of Comoros is banned from operating commercial air services to, from, and within the United Kingdom:
- Air Service Comores
Congo (Brazzaville)
All air carriers certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of Congo (Brazzaville) are banned from operating commercial air services to, from, and within the United Kingdom. Carriers include but are not limited to the following:
- Canadian Airways Congo
- Equaflight Services
- Equajet
- Societe Nouvelle Air Congo
- Trans Air Congo
Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)
All air carriers certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) are banned from operating commercial air services to, from, and within the United Kingdom. Carriers include but are not limited to the following:
- Air Fast Congo
- Air Katanga
- Busy Bee Congo
- Compagnie Africaine D’Aviation (CAA)
- Congo Airways
- Kin Avia
- Malu Aviation
- Mwant Jet
- Serve Air Cargo
- Swala Aviation
Djibouti
All air carriers certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of Djibouti are banned from operating commercial air services to, from, and within the United Kingdom. Carriers include but are not limited to the following:
- Daallo Airlines
Equatorial Guinea
All air carriers certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of Equatorial Guinea are banned from operating commercial air services to, from, and within the United Kingdom. Carriers include but are not limited to the following:
- Ceiba Intercontinental
- Cronos Airlines
Eritrea
All air carriers certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of Eritrea are banned from operating commercial air services to, from, and within the United Kingdom. Carriers include but are not limited to the following:
- Eritrean Airlines
- Nasair Eritrea
Iran
Other than the exception listed below, the following air carriers certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of Iran are banned from operating commercial air services to, from, and within the United Kingdom:
- Iran Aseman Airlines
Permitted air carriers
The following air carriers certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of Iran are permitted to operate into, within or out of the United Kingdom:
- Iran Air, with the exception of their Fokker 100 and B747 aircraft which are banned
Iraq
The following air carrier certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of Iraq is banned from operating commercial air services to, from, and within the United Kingdom:
- Iraqi Airways
Kyrgyzstan
All air carriers certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of Kyrgyzstan are banned from operating commercial air services to, from, and within the United Kingdom. Carriers include but are not limited to the following:
- Air Company Air Kg
- Air Manas
- Avia Traffic Company
- Sky Kg Airlines
- Tez Jet
Liberia
All air carriers certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of Liberia are banned from operating commercial air services to, from, and within the United Kingdom.
Libya
All air carriers certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of Libya are banned from operating commercial air services to, from, and within the United Kingdom. Carriers include but are not limited to the following:
- Afriqiyah Airways
- Air Libya
- Al Maha Aviation
- Buraq Air
- Global Aviation and Services
- Libyan Airlines
- Libyan Wings Airlines
- Petro Air
Nepal
All air carriers certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of Nepal are banned from operating commercial air services to, from, and within the United Kingdom. Carriers include but are not limited to the following:
- Air Dynasty Heli. S
- Altitude Air
- Buddha Air
- Fishtail Air
- Guna Airlines
- Heli Everest
- Himalaya Airlines
- Kailash Helicopter Services
- Makalu Air
- Manang Air Pvt
- Mountain Helicopters
- Mustang Helicopters
- Prabhu Helicopters
- Nepal Airlines Corporation
- Saurya Airlines
- Shree Airlines
- Simrik Air
- Sita Air
- Summit Air
- Tara Air
- Yeti Airlines
North Korea
Permitted air carriers
The following air carrier certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of North Korea is permitted to operate into, within or out of the United Kingdom:
- Air Koryo when operating TU-204 aircraft with registration P-632 or P-633: all other aircraft operated by Air Koryo are banned
Pakistan
All air carriers certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of Pakistan are banned from operating commercial air services to, from, and within the United Kingdom. Carriers include but are not limited to the following:
- Airblue Limited
- AirSial
- Pakistan International Airlines
- SereneAir Private Ltd.
- Vision Air International (Private) Ltd.
The Russian Federation
All air carriers certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of The Russian Federation are banned from operating commercial air services to, from, and within the United Kingdom. Carriers include but are not limited to the following:
- Airbridgecargo Airlines Limited Liability Company
- Air Company Aviacon Zitotrans
- Aircompany North-West Llc
- Air Company Sirius-Aero Ltd
- Air Company Sky Gates Airlines Llc
- Atran Llc
- Aviacompany Aviastar-Tu
- Azur Air Limited Liability Company
- Erofey Limited Liability Company
- Fsbi Aviation Rescue Company Of Emercom Of Russia
- Gazpromavia Aviation Company Limited
- Joint Stock Company Air Company Yakutia
- Joint Stock Company Air Management Group
- Joint Stock Company Alrosa Air Company
- Joint Stock Company Azimuth Airlines
- Joint-Stock Company Iraero Airlines
- Joint Stock Company Jet Air Group
- Joint Stock Company Nordstar Airlines
- Joint Stock Company Red Wings
- Joint Stock Company Royal Flight Airlines
- Joint Stock Company Rusjet
- Joint Stock Company Siberia Airlines
- Joint Stock Company Smartavia Airlines
- Joint Stock Company The 224-th Flight Unit State Airlines
- Joint Stock Company Ural Airlines
- Joint Stock Company Uvt Aero
- Js Aviation Company Rusline
- Jsc Yamal Airlines
- Limited Liability Company Aviaservis
- Limited Liability Company Aviation Technology Investment Service
- Llc Aircompany Ikar
- Llc Nord Wind
- Ltd I Fly
- Meridian Air Company
- Pobeda Airlines Limited Liability Company
- Rossiya Airlines Joint Stock Company
- Russian Airlines Aeroflot
- Severstal Aircompany Ltd
- Tulpar Air Ltd
- Turukhan Aviation
- Utair Aviation
- Utair Limited
- Volga Dnepr Airlines
São Tomé and Principe
All air carriers certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of São Tomé and Principe are banned from operating commercial air services to, from, and within the United Kingdom. Carriers include but are not limited to the following:
- Africa’s Connection
- STP Airways
Sierra Leone
All air carriers certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of Sierra Leone are banned from operating commercial air services to, from, and within the United Kingdom.
Sudan
All air carriers certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of Sudan are banned from operating commercial air services to, from, and within the United Kingdom. Carriers include but are not limited to the following:
- Alfa Airlines Sd
- Badr Airlines
- Blue Bird Aviation
- Eldinder Aviation
- Green Flag Aviation
- Helejetic Air
- Kata Air Transport
- Kush Aviation
- Nova Airways
- Sudan Airways
- Sun Air
- Tarco Air
Suriname
The following air carrier certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of Suriname is banned from operating commercial air services to, from, and within the United Kingdom:
- Blue Wing Airlines
Venezuela
The following air carrier certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of Venezuela is banned from operating commercial air services to, from, and within the United Kingdom:
- Avior Airlines
Zimbabwe
The following air carrier certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of Zimbabwe is banned from operating commercial air services to, from, and within the United Kingdom:
- Air Zimbabwe pvt
Why are countries or airlines on the UK Air Safety List?
All countries and airlines are assessed against internationally recognised standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).
The Secretary of State for Transport decides which airlines and states go on the air safety list, based on advice from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and the UK Air Safety Committee.
The UK adds countries or airlines to the Air Safety List where it:
- finds these standards are not met
- considers these pose a severe and ongoing risk to the safety of operations
The Air Safety List therefore has 3 key functions:
- protect UK travellers wherever they are travelling in the world
- inform UK citizens of aviation safety compliance so that consumers can make informed decisions
- deter poor safety performance of foreign airlines or states
The air safety list is routinely reviewed every 3 months, or by exception where required.
Advice to UK citizens and consumers
Through the UK Air Safety List, it is hoped that citizens will be able to make better informed decisions about their choice of air carrier before booking. This will help limit the exposure of UK citizens to poor safety performing air airlines.
As a passenger, you have the right to know the identity of every airline that you are flying with during your trip. An airline is required to inform you of the identity of the operating airline or airlines when making a reservation and on your ticket.
You should check if the airline you are travelling on is safe. If the carrier is listed on the UK Air Safety list, it means that:
- they are not compliant with minimum international safety standards
- the UK has determined it is an unsafe carrier
You are recommended to not book or fly on a carrier listed on the air safety list, for your safety.
How the air safety list interacts with third country operators approvals
To operate Commercial Air Transport operations to, from and within the UK, airlines require a UK issued third country operator (TCO) approval, issued by the UK Civil Aviation Authority.
Whilst the TCO system operates as a separate system to the UK air safety list and is operated solely by the UK Civil Aviation Authority, decisions taken in relation to TCOs will also be considered as part of the UK air safety list process, where identified deficiencies are considered severe enough for air safety list consideration.
Why aviation safety matters
The UK government is committed to ensuring UK airspace and UK airlines are amongst the safest in the world and to improving the high safety standards in aviation. Civil aviation is highly regulated and monitored to help ensure the highest levels of safety and compliance with international safety standards. In addition, the UK’s State Safety Programme makes a commitment to protecting UK nationals and reducing the likelihood of being involved in an accident anywhere in the world.
Legal disclaimer
The annex to regulation (EC) No 2111/2005 sets out the general criteria for consideration of an operating ban for safety related reasons. This Regulation and Annex has been retained in UK law. It should be noted that this criterion is not exhaustive, and additional safety considerations may be taken into account when making assessments and determinations in relation to the inclusion on or removal from the UK Air Safety List. All decisions are taken according to the merits of each individual case on the basis of available evidence and by reference to the relevant safety standards and considerations.
Additional information
Inclusion on the Air Safety List indicates that airlines and states do not meet internationally agreed standards, to the best of the UK’s knowledge.
Maximum effort has been made to verify the exact identity of all airlines in the UK Air Safety List. If a state has been banned, but not all airlines identified, it can be understood that all airlines certified in the state are banned from operating within the UK.
Airlines subject to an operating ban may be permitted to operate within the UK by using a wet-leased aircraft of an airline, which is not subject to an operating ban. This relies on the aircraft and associated airline complying with the relevant safety standards. The aircraft being used could be branded as if it is a fleet of a banned carrier.
Updates to this page
Last updated 21 November 2023 + show all updates
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Corrections to the air line safety list made.
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Moldova removed from list.
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First published.