Afghanistan's Safi Airways is to wet-lease aircraft to maintain its German route in light of the European Commission's blacklisting on safety oversight grounds of all operations by Afghan carriers.
The carrier, which has been operating between Kabul and Frankfurt since 2009, is also looking at the possibility of securing a European registration for its fleet to extract itself from the effects of the ban.
Safi Airways says it will be forced to wet-lease aircraft to keep the Frankfurt operation open. This will require additional monthly investment of more than $500,000.
Safi chief executive Werner Borchert, describing the ban as a "serious setback" for scheduled traffic between Afghanistan and Europe and pointing out that the carrier's aircraft have been inspected often by German authorities, says: "What makes this ban especially hard for us is the fact that the Commission has, on several occasions, confirmed that it does not see a safety risk in Safi's operations."
Borchert says Safi is "in discussions" to re-register its fleet through the acquisition of a European air operator's certificate, to bring it under the supervision of European authorities and enable it to escape the restriction.
Safi has Airbus A340 and A320 aircraft, as well as a Boeing 767 and 737s, in its fleet. It says the jets are maintained by Lufthansa Technik and that the airline employs primarily European pilots and technical personnel.
Borchert adds that the airline is intending to pursue membership of the International Air Transport Association operational safety audit registry in January.
While it says the ban comes at the "worst possible time", Safi is not criticising the European Commission's fundamental decision about Afghanistan. But it says it "does not understand" why regulatory authorities could not reach a "transition agreement" for the carrier despite its safety standards.
Source: Flight International
