An airline has been barred from helping rebuild Afghanistan's aviation industry.
Crawley-based Astraeus Airlines has spent months putting together a deal with Ariana Afghan Airlines.
It planned to supply two refurbished Boeing 757 aircraft along with a flight crew, maintenance and technical support, to be flown under Ariana's name.
Astraeus would have also provided training, eventually enabling an Afghan flight crew to take over.
The Afghan airline lost six of its eight aircraft during the US-led invasion of 2001.
The two Boeing 757s have been grounded at Gatwick for three months while the firm waited for the Department for Transport to sanction the deal.
Now the department has ruled against the application because of fears that airliners registered in Britain would be targeted by terrorists.
Astraeus' commercial director Jonathan Hinkles said the airline had carried out safety assessments and would have worked with Ariana to improve security.
US Omni Air International, based in Oklahoma, is now expected to take the contract. An Astraeus spokesman said the airline had a contingency plan.
Wednesday, May 3, 2006
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