Mumbai: European aviation regulator EASA (European Union Aviation Safety Agency) suspended its third country operator authorisation of Indian charter operator VSR Ventures more than a year ago, citing a “Level 1” safety finding after the company failed to provide documents and information repeatedly sought in the Sept 2023 Learjet 45 accident in Mumbai.EASA had also marked the suspension order to DGCA. Last week, another Learjet operated by VSR crashed near Baramati, killing Ajit Pawar and four others. A “Level 1” safety finding is EASA’s most serious category of non-compliance, issued when a safety risk cannot be ruled out or when an operator fails to cooperate with regulatory oversight. Under EASA’s safety oversight framework, a TCO authorisation is mandatory for any non-EU aircraft operator to land or overfly European airspace. The authorisation implies that the operator meets international safety standards. VSR did not comment on a query sent by TOI.VSR denied EU regulator access to safety recordsThe operator did not grant access to EASA to the requested documents and information. In the absence of safety-relevant information and data provided by the operator, the agency could not determine, as part of its monitoring obligations, the operator’s continued compliance with the applicable requirement of TCO, said the suspension order, accessed by TOI.The operator did not provide information about the accident involving Learjet-45 in Mumbai, it said. “EASA was interested in safety recommendations potentially addressed to the air carrier and outcome of internal investigations, notably with regard to any measure(s) taken in addressing potential contributing factors,” it added. The suspension order listed five dates in Oct and Nov 2024 when EASA sent reminders to VSR seeking information about the accident andreceived no response.“VSR was given an opportunity to take adequate measures on Level 1 finding and propose acceptable corrective action plans, together with a root cause analysis and proposed implementation timelines,” the order said, citing reason for TCO suspension.