Inspections carried out by the civil aviation department show no reason for concern regarding the safety of Ryanair flights in Cyprus, the transport ministry said on Wednesday.

The statement came in response to a question by Limassol MP Ephraim Christou regarding the recent incident on a Ryanair flight from Thessaloniki to Munich, during which a passenger was sucked out of a plane window.

Former Transport Minister Alexis Vafeades said that the department of civil aviation has been informed about the incident and was monitoring its investigation by the Greek authorities and would take appropriate measures in accordance with the evaluation of safety recommendations issued by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).

He said that the department had conducted four on-site inspections of Ryanair aircraft within the last two years which had not revealed any reason that justified restrictions or safety concerns regarding the group’s operations in the Republic.

Vafeades said that the specific aircraft with the registration number 9H-QEU, belongs to Malta Air Ltd, a Ryanair Group company, which holds an Air Operator Certificate (AOC) from the civil aviation authority of Malta, with the latter being responsible for the continuous supervision of the company.

He added that Cyprus civil aviation authority holds the power to carry out inspections of aircrafts of foreign air carriers operating to and from Cyprus airports to verify the compliance with relevant safety requirements and could impose corrective or restrictive measures if deemed necessary.

Regarding the possibility of increased inspections, Vafeades said that the frequency of inspections were determined based on a risk assessment and available safety data, as well as results from previous inspections, noting that additional measures would be considered in cooperation with relevant European bodies.

Concluding his response, Vafeades emphasised the existing mechanism that ensures the Republic is immediately informed of “significant safety incidents” occurring outside the Republic but concerning air carriers operating in Cyprus. He said that this mechanism allowed for the relevant information to be evaluated within the framework of the Republic’s supervisory activity in a timely manner.