Safety is the top priority in aviation. To ensure that this is always guaranteed, foreign airlines require a licence if they wish to fly to Switzerland.
Airlines that do not obtain this licence either have serious safety deficiencies or are not adequately monitored by the aviation authorities in their own country. If a country or airline is on this list, its personnel are also not permitted to work in EU or EFTA states. There are currently 128 airlines on this list (as at 30 April 2024).
Strict controls
Inspectors from the Federal Office of Civil Aviation (FOCA) carry out regular spot checks as part of the Europe-wide SAFA programme (Safety Assessment of Foreign Aircraft) and check whether the airlines meet the required international standards in technical and operational terms (standards of the International Civil Aviation Organisation, ICAO) and whether the authorities of the country of origin effectively supervise the airline. The company must also have adequate insurance cover. As a rule, the FOCA issues operating licences to foreign airlines for a period of five years.
However, the actual supervision with in-depth inspections and audits is generally the responsibility of the civil aviation authority of the airline’s country of origin. The FOCA can withdraw the licence at any time if it suspects that the standards are not being complied with. Airlines that are categorised as unsafe by the EU are also not allowed to fly to Switzerland.
As Switzerland has adopted the EU blacklist and is also involved in the updating process, airlines that are banned in an EU or EFTA member state and wish to fly to Switzerland again are generally not granted a landing licence.
Die Black-List
These airlines are prohibited from operating in the European Union and the EFTA states:
- Air Zimbabwe (Zimbabwe)
- Avior Airlines (Venezuela)
- Blue Wing Airlines (Suriname)
- Iran Aseman Airlines (Iran)
- Fly Baghdad (Iraq)
- Iraqi Airways (Iraq)
All air carriers authorised by the relevant authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight in the following countries are not permitted to operate flights in the EU and EFTA states:
- Afghanistan
- Angola (except for two airlines)
- Armenia
- Congo (Brazzaville and Democratic Republic of Congo)
- Djibouti
- Equatorial Guinea
- Eritrea
- Krigistan
- Liberia
- Libya
- Nepal
- Russia
- São Tomé and Príncipe
- Sierra Leone
- Sudan
The following two airlines are only authorised to operate with restrictions in the airspace of EU and EFTA states:
- The Fokker F100 and Boeing B747 aircraft of Iran Air (Iran)
- The entire fleet of Air Koryo (North Korea), with the exception of two aircraft of type TU-204
- The listed airlines may be granted a licence if a chartered aircraft (wet lease) is used that is not subject to an operating ban and complies with safety standards.
If a listed airline considers that it fulfils the necessary technical elements and requirements prescribed in the applicable international safety standards, it may initiate an application for review and removal from the list.
The whole list can be found on the Website of the European Commission.