Brussels, 17/07/2015 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission sent a reasoned opinion to Germany on Thursday 16 July asking that it bring the conditions for issuing pilots' licences into line with EU law.
The Commission believes that German law, in particular, paragraph 7 of the German air safety law (Luftsicherheitsgesetz - LuftSiG) which requires a background check, thus applicants for pilot licences need to provide a security background check with no negative remarks before the licence can be issued. Under European law, member states must issue pilot licences to applicants who comply with the rules described in Commission Regulation (EU) No 1178/2011, which relates to flying skills, and physical and linguistic skills etc., without any additional administrative or technical requirements.
Germany, however, imposes checks on security issues - for example, to detect a terrorist risk - when, under European legislation, this kind of check should be carried out as a condition of employment, a source close to the matter told EUROPE.
In a bizarre twist, on the same day, the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) submitted its report on the Germanwings crash to the Commission, in which it sets out a range of recommendations to avoid any repetition of the horror of March (see EUROPE 11347). “No link with the EASA report”, according to the Commission.
Germany now has two months to notify the Commission of the measures it intends to take. (Pascal Hansens)