Flights to India cancelled and passengers stranded as EU bans budget airline

Cheap flights to India will be harder to come by after the EU banned Turkmenistan Airlines from European air space over safety concerns.

The Turkmenistan flag carrier operates services to Amritsar from Birmingham and Heathrow and New Delhi from Heathrow, via the capital Turkmeni capital Ashgabat.

A spokesperson for the Civil Aviation Authority, the UK’s governing body, said it had withdrawn Turkmenistan Airlines’ permit to operate and suspended its flights to and from London and Birmingham with immediate effect. The Foreign Office said the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has suspended the airline’s flights to and from the EU “pending confirmation that it meets international air safety standards”.

The CAA said passengers affected by any cancellations should contact the airline, adding that some may need to make their own arrangements to return home. “They should contact Turkmenistan Airlines, your travel insurer or travel agent for assistance,” it said.

While Turkmenistan welcomes very few visitors from the UK - it does feature on Silk Road itineraries - the carrier’s onward services to India as well as Beijing and Bangkok were popular for their value.

Turkmenistan Airlines was founded in 1992 and also flies to Frankfurt, Istanbul and Paris. It will now be added to the EU’s Air Safety List of blacklisted airlines, which is kept regularly updated.

Last year, the EU lifted its ban on Indonesian airlines flying in the skies above Europe following improvements to aviation safety standards. In 2007 all Indonesian carriers had been placed on the list.

Currently, airlines from the following countries are banned from European skies:

1. Afghanistan

2. Angola

3. Republic of Congo

4. Democratic Republic of Congo

5. Djibouti

6. Equatorial Guinea

7. Eritrea

8. Gabon

9. Kyrgyzstan

10. Liberia

11. Libya

12. Nepal

13. Sao Tome and Principe

14. Sierra Leone

15. Sudan