The European Union has removed all airlines certified in Kyrgyzstan from its aviation safety blacklist, ending a ban that had stood for two decades, the Kyrgyz presidential administration said on June 8.
The decision clears the way for Kyrgyz carriers to operate direct flights to and from the bloc for the first time since 2006, and positions the Central Asian country’s fledgling flag carrier, Asman Airlines, to upgrade from a regional operator to an international one.
The European Commission’s Directorate-General for Mobility and Transport struck all Kyrgyz-certified airlines from its Air Safety List, with the move to be formalised through a Commission regulation, the presidency said. No other Central Asian state remains on the list.
The Commission praised Kyrgyzstan’s progress, citing technical consultations, an assessment visit in March and hearings in Brussels, and said it would continue technical cooperation to support the gains, according to the presidency.
Kyrgyzstan featured on the EU’s first blacklist when it was published almost exactly 20 years ago, and made several failed attempts to bring its aviation sector up to the bloc’s standards. In November 2024, President Sadyr Japarov said during a visit to Berlin that his country’s airlines would soon be removed.
The country hired Catalin Radu, a former head of Kazakhstan’s Aviation Administration and former president of the European Civil Aviation Conference, as a consultant. Radu was credited with helping remove Kazakh carriers from the EU list in May 2024.
State-owned Asman Airlines, based at Manas International Airport in Bishkek, went operational nearly two years ago and plans to fly to the EU using two leased Airbus A320neo aircraft.
Demand for direct routes remains uncertain, as travellers can already reach Europe from Kyrgyzstan via Turkey or the United Arab Emirates.