On June 23, 2007 Rostransnadzor and Rosaviation (the state transportation watchdogs) imposed bans and limitations on flights to the EU operated by some Russian air carriers. Ural Airlines, for one, was restricted in the type of aircraft it could use for these flights, namely, the airline was not permitted to use its Tu 154M planes until those were brought in compliance with the international regulations.

Ural Airlines’ performance in the summer was flawless; in addition, the airline strictly obeyed all the instructions, so all the limitations imposed on the carrier have been canceled. This means Ural Airlines now uses three types of aircraft (IL 86, Tu 154M, and A 320) to fly to Europe.

According to Rostransnadzor and Rosaviation’s decree as of November 26, 2007, their inspections of the airplanes and of how effectively the carriers have been following the rules have led them to believe that most of the companies on the list had to be limited in their use of aircraft for scheduled, chartered, and incidental flights to the EU, excluding Ural Airlines which can use it’s A 320 (VP-BQY/BQZ) and Tu 154 M (RA-85807/85814/85833/85844) planes. The decree came into effect on November 26, 2007 and thus replaced the original one signed on June 2, 2007.

This means certain media reports about Ural Airlines being blacklisted are simply not true, the carrier’s press officer reports.