On Nov. 28, European Commission issued the sixth update of its airline blacklist, removing Suriname's Blue Wings Airlines and lifting the operating restrictions imposed on Pakistan International Airlines.

Both carriers, however, will remain subject to prioritized ramp inspections at Community airports in order to ensure their "consistent adherence" to relevant safety standards.

"This latest revision shows that when airlines take rapid and sound corrective action to comply with safety standards, they can be withdrawn from the list quickly," EC VP-Transport Jacques Barrot noted.

"It also shows that the list increasingly serves as a preemptive rather than punitive tool for safeguarding aviation safety."

He added that relevant oversight authorities verified measures taken by PIA and Blue Wings and "that these measures provide for long-lasting sustainable solutions to avoid the same problems recurring in the future."

The blacklist now comprises eight individual carriers including TAAG Angola Airlines, Mahan Air and Ukrainian Mediterranean Airlines, whose operations are fully banned in the EU.

Also banned are all airlines from Equatorial Guinea, Indonesia, Kyrgyzstan, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Swaziland and Democratic Republic of Congo (with the exception of Hewa Bora Airways, which is subject to operating restrictions).

Operational restrictions were placed on Air Bangladesh and Air Service Comores.