Air Astana has officially been removed from a list of airlines that have faced operating restrictions in the European Union. In July 2009 all carriers of Kazakhstan were banned from operating to Europe while Air Astana was the only exception. The EU’s Air Safety Committee had recognised that Air Astana’s safety standards were fully compliant with the international standards and establish a system for safe flights, but had imposed a cap on the airline’s existing number of services to the EU at the time.