US embassy cable - 05PARIS5824

UNCLAS PARIS 005824 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EB/TRA, EUR/WE 
BRUSSELS FOR FAA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAIR, FR 
SUBJECT: FRANCE PUBLISHES AVIATION BLACKLIST 
 
1. (U) In response to highly publicized recent plane 
accidents, on August 28 the French Civil Aviation Authority 
(DGAC) published  via internet its "blacklist" of companies 
that are forbidden to operate in France, as transportation 
minister Dominique Perben promised last week. The companies 
on the list are: Korea: Air Koryo, U.S.: Air Saint-Thomas, 
Liberia: International Air Services, Mozambique: Lineas Aer 
de Mozambique, and Thailand: Phuket Airlines. 
 
2. The list may be consulted at: 
http://www.aviation-civile.gouv.fr/html 
/oservice/listeinternetcompaninterdites.pdf. 
 
3. (U) In an interview published in "Le Monde" dated August 
26, Perben also said France would exercise "greater rigor" 
toward states that fail to meet international safety norms, 
and would publish a list of countries whose companies would 
be forbidden to operate in France.  Though France intended to 
continue to work with norms established by ICAO, he warned 
that if problem states did not improve their records of 
inspecting aircraft and training pilots, France would add 
them to its blacklist and notify other states and ICAO of its 
findings. 
 
4. (U) Perben also referred to complementary proposals to 
increase consumer confidence in airline safety, notably the 
"blue label" airline quality labeling scheme that his 
predecessor put forward in the wake of the Flash Air crash in 
Sharm-el-Sheikh in January 2004, and a regulation requiring 
tour operators to inform customers of the names of companies 
furnishing transport that he said would be issued later this 
year. 
 
5. (U) Comment: High-profile accidents involving large 
numbers of French nationals, including those in 
Sharm-el-Sheik and Venezuela, have generated substantial 
media coverage and growing public concern about airline 
safety in France.  The publication of the DGAC's blacklist is 
the first step in what promises to be a series of measures 
intended to increase public confidence in the reliability and 
transparency of France's air safety programs.  How they will 
be co-ordinated with the EU's upcoming blacklist as well as 
the European Civil Aviation Conference's Safety Action Plan 
(adopted August 29) remains to be seen. End comment. 
STAPLETON