The European Commission announced, on Tuesday, June 9, 2026, the ban on Air Express Algeria across the entire European Union, after identifying “serious safety concerns” and breaches of international standards.
The Algerian company has been added to the European Union’s Air Safety List, which now bars it from operating flights within the airspace of EU member states.
The decision comes as part of the 48th update to this list, created in 2006 to identify carriers subject to a total ban or operating restrictions in Europe.
Non-compliance with international standards
According to the European Commission, evaluations conducted by European aviation safety experts revealed gaps in Air Express Algeria’s compliance with international standards applicable to the sector.
Brussels, however, did not specify the exact nature of the deficiencies found, nor the measures the company would need to take to obtain a possible lifting of the ban.
Air Express Algeria will therefore no longer be able to operate flights to, from or within the European Union while it remains on this list.
The company had not yet publicly reacted to the decision at the time of the announcement.
A company specialized in the oil and gas industry
Founded in 2002, Air Express Algeria is a private company specialized in services primarily intended for firms in the oil and gas sector.
Based in Hassi Messaoud, in southeastern Algeria, it notably provides personnel transport, medical evacuations, flights for prominent figures, and light freight transport.
Its operations are mainly tied to the needs of companies active in the oil and gas zones of the Algerian Sahara.
The company also states that it offers charter services and has aircraft suited to difficult terrains and the short runways used in certain industrial areas.
An ban that does not target Air Algérie
The European decision concerns only Air Express Algeria.
It does not apply to Air Algérie or to other Algerian airlines not listed on the European Union’s Air Safety List.
This clarification is important because Air Express Algeria is a specialized carrier, whose activity is mainly oriented toward businesses and specific missions, rather than regular passenger transport routes between Algeria and Europe.
Kyrgyzstan removed from the blacklist
The same update contains a favorable decision for Kyrgyzstan.
All airlines certified in this country have been removed from the European list, after nearly twenty years of restrictions.
The European Commission welcomed the progress made by Kyrgyz authorities in supervising aviation safety and in aligning their regulations with international standards.
This development shows that being listed on the list is not necessarily final. An airline or a country can be delisted after correcting the identified deficiencies and demonstrating a lasting improvement in its oversight system.
154 airlines now prohibited
Following this update, 154 airlines are prohibited from European airspace.
Among them, 126 carriers certified in 16 countries are prohibited due to deficiencies in the oversight exercised by their national civil aviation authorities.
The list also includes 22 Russian carriers and six individual carriers from other countries, among them Air Express Algeria, Air Zimbabwe, Avior Airlines, Iran Aseman Airlines, Fly Baghdad and Iraqi Airways.
Two other carriers, Iran Air and Air Koryo, remain subject to partial restrictions. They can operate to the European Union only with certain types of aircraft.
How does the European Union’s Air Safety List work?
The European Union’s Air Safety List was launched in 2006 to inform passengers and prevent the operation, within the European Union, of carriers that do not meet international standards.
It is regularly updated based on technical evaluations of the carriers themselves, but also on the capacity of national authorities to properly supervise their aviation sector.
Decisions are taken on the advice of the European Committee for Aviation Safety, which brings together experts from member states, with the support of the European Union Aviation Safety Agency.
The stated objective is to ensure a high level of protection for passengers traveling to, from or within the European Union.
A decision with reputational implications
Even though Air Express Algeria does not focus on regular routes to Europe, its inclusion on the European list represents a setback for its image.
In the aviation sector, an EU ban can affect relations with customers, industrial partners, insurers, leasing companies and foreign authorities.
To regain access to the European market, the company will need to demonstrate that it has corrected the identified deficiencies and that it sustainably adheres to international safety standards.
The European decision does not mean that an accident is imminent nor that all of the company’s flights are automatically dangerous. It does indicate, however, that the assurances presented during the evaluations were not deemed sufficient by European experts.
