big fraidy cat
9th Sep 2006, 11:08
While this article addresses another issue of this case, I thought it appropriate to post it here, rather than start a new thread. [From the Cyprus Mail edition of 9 September].
Cyprus aviation face EU blacklist
BOTH Civil Aviation and ajet—formerly known as Helios—are in trouble with the European Commission and the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) for not complying with EU air safety standards.
Moreover, the embattled airline risks being placed on the EU’s blacklist—effectively banning it from operating inside EU airspace.
It would be an unprecedented step, as the blacklist includes some 90 airlines from African countries, such as the Congo, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and others such as Kazakhstan, Kyrghyzstan and Afghanistan.
According to Politis, during a recent meeting in Poland the Commission gave the head of Civil Aviation Leonidas Leonidou an ultimatum to plug the holes air safety.
The warnings come a year after the Helios disaster and repeated pledges by the government to restructure Civil Aviation.
At the meeting in Poland, the European Commission's director of air transport Daniel Calleja voiced grave misgivings about both the state of Civil Aviation and ajet.
A little background is useful here. On 19 July the European Commission sent a letter to Civil Aviation, asking that the shortcomings with air safety be urgent addressed. Cypriot authorities responded on 4 August, but their arguments were apparently not considered satisfactory.
EASA officials then carried out an on-site inspection in Cyprus to review the status on the island. In a report compiled shortly after, they concluded that Civil Aviation had still failed to comply with around two-thirds of EASA’s recommendations.
These include the fact Civil Aviation continues to lack a legal department to regulate matters such as Helios’ name-change to ajet. In addition, the Flight Safety Unit still has insufficient manpower despite increasing workload. And coordinated staff training is in a shambolic state.
Moreover, EASA criticized the government’s hiring of services from SH&E, an air transport consultancy firm.
Based in the United States, SH&E was appointed in September 2005 to carry out a ”diagnostic report” outlining shortcomings in Civil Aviation.
The arrangement was personally made by President Tassos Papadopoulos who, while on an official visit to the United States, took it upon himself to invite aviation experts to Cyprus.
The speed with which the contract was awarded – without inviting tenders –took most by surprise, including the relevant Minister of Communications. It also opened a debate on whether the President could circumvent normal procurement procedures.
Moreover, it transpired that Louis Sorentino, an official of the Flight Safety Foundation who recommended SH&E to Papadopoulos, was also a member of SH&E. Critics said this was further evidence suggestive of a conflict of interest.
And both Flight Safety Foundation and SH&E are based in the US and employ American air safety standards, prompting questions as to why Cyprus, a European country, did not opt for advice from experts in the EU.
This last point was mentioned by EASA, which has doubts as to whether SH&E is qualified to help with the restructuring of Civil Aviation.
According to Politis, the idea of recommending Flight Safety Foundation came from none other than Akrivos Tsolakis, the head of the team investigating last August’s crash. The paper also said that Tsolakis was at some time a member of the foundation’s board of directors and had worked closely with Sorentino in the past.
Copyright © Cyprus Mail 2006
Cyprus aviation face EU blacklist
BOTH Civil Aviation and ajet—formerly known as Helios—are in trouble with the European Commission and the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) for not complying with EU air safety standards.
Moreover, the embattled airline risks being placed on the EU’s blacklist—effectively banning it from operating inside EU airspace.
It would be an unprecedented step, as the blacklist includes some 90 airlines from African countries, such as the Congo, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and others such as Kazakhstan, Kyrghyzstan and Afghanistan.
According to Politis, during a recent meeting in Poland the Commission gave the head of Civil Aviation Leonidas Leonidou an ultimatum to plug the holes air safety.
The warnings come a year after the Helios disaster and repeated pledges by the government to restructure Civil Aviation.
At the meeting in Poland, the European Commission's director of air transport Daniel Calleja voiced grave misgivings about both the state of Civil Aviation and ajet.
A little background is useful here. On 19 July the European Commission sent a letter to Civil Aviation, asking that the shortcomings with air safety be urgent addressed. Cypriot authorities responded on 4 August, but their arguments were apparently not considered satisfactory.
EASA officials then carried out an on-site inspection in Cyprus to review the status on the island. In a report compiled shortly after, they concluded that Civil Aviation had still failed to comply with around two-thirds of EASA’s recommendations.
These include the fact Civil Aviation continues to lack a legal department to regulate matters such as Helios’ name-change to ajet. In addition, the Flight Safety Unit still has insufficient manpower despite increasing workload. And coordinated staff training is in a shambolic state.
Moreover, EASA criticized the government’s hiring of services from SH&E, an air transport consultancy firm.
Based in the United States, SH&E was appointed in September 2005 to carry out a ”diagnostic report” outlining shortcomings in Civil Aviation.
The arrangement was personally made by President Tassos Papadopoulos who, while on an official visit to the United States, took it upon himself to invite aviation experts to Cyprus.
The speed with which the contract was awarded – without inviting tenders –took most by surprise, including the relevant Minister of Communications. It also opened a debate on whether the President could circumvent normal procurement procedures.
Moreover, it transpired that Louis Sorentino, an official of the Flight Safety Foundation who recommended SH&E to Papadopoulos, was also a member of SH&E. Critics said this was further evidence suggestive of a conflict of interest.
And both Flight Safety Foundation and SH&E are based in the US and employ American air safety standards, prompting questions as to why Cyprus, a European country, did not opt for advice from experts in the EU.
This last point was mentioned by EASA, which has doubts as to whether SH&E is qualified to help with the restructuring of Civil Aviation.
According to Politis, the idea of recommending Flight Safety Foundation came from none other than Akrivos Tsolakis, the head of the team investigating last August’s crash. The paper also said that Tsolakis was at some time a member of the foundation’s board of directors and had worked closely with Sorentino in the past.
Copyright © Cyprus Mail 2006