The list of aircraft operators established by Regulation (EC) No 748/2009 aims to reduce the administrative burden on aircraft operators by providing for a single Member State to be responsible for each aircraft operator, so that each operator knows which Member State it will be regulated by and each Member State is clear on which operators it should regulate.

The inclusion in the Union’s emissions trading scheme, including the obligation to surrender allowances, is dependent upon the performance of an aviation activity in Annex I of Directive 2003/87/EC and is not dependent on the inclusion in the list of aircraft operators established by Regulation (EC) No 748/2009.

A number of aircraft operators employ management or service companies to file flight plans and pay route charges on their behalf. Consequently the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) designator of the management or service company often appears in the flight plan, notwithstanding that such companies may not be aircraft operators. The best means to identify an aircraft operator or aircraft owner is the presence of the ICAO designator or registration marking in the flight plan, and it is therefore often not possible to identify with certainty the relevant operator unless the operator provides Eurocontrol with a fleet declaration containing data on the aircraft it operates. In establishing the updated list of aircraft operators, the Commission has taken account of the fleet list declarations provided to it by operators and management and service companies. However, a number of management or service companies and aircraft registration markings appear in the updated list due to a lack of information provided.

Regulation (EC) No 748/2009 should therefore be amended accordingly,