UK minister of state for transport Theresa Villiers has supported the proposed flight time regulations put forward by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), saying that new rules would offer a "significant safety gain" for UK passengers.
The UK Parliament's transport select committee today discussed the impact of EASA's proposal with Villiers, the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), pilot unions and airline industry representatives.
The British Airline Pilots' Association (BALPA), along with other European pilot unions, believes that the proposed harmonisation and unification of varying flight time regulations across European Union (EU) member states will lower safety standards in certain countries, such as the UK, where stricter national rules are currently in place.
