While the process of keeping an airline operational is rife with red tape and documentation, the single most important license that a carrier needs in order to sell tickets to passengers is the air operator’s certificate (AOC).
The license is granted by the government agency regulating aviation in a given country, with common reasons for a suspension or revocation including a failed safety audit, inactivity, or a financial situation that puts the airline’s future sustainability into question.
Some of the airlines that lost their AOCs in 2026 include British charter carrier Pen-Avia, Brazilian airline Total Linhas Aéreas, Austrian airline Mali Air, and Ireland’s Westair Aviation.
AirAiles no longer flying, has inactive AOC
In Houston, charter carrier Starflite Aviation also had its AOC license revoked in March 2026 after the FAA found that its owners falsified pilot training records to bypass safety audits.
The newest airline to have an invalid AOC is, as first reported by Swiss outlet ch-aviation, French charter carrier AirAiles.
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Founded in the Strasbourg region in 1991, AirAiles operated a fleet of two planes to run charter and business jet flights. The Citation Jet 4 and Cessna Citation Latitude allowed for only short routes within France and to a few nearby European cities.
According to the report, the airline’s AOC is inactive as of September 2026 after the phase-out of its last remaining jet. Although little other information on the airline’s status and future plans is publicly available, a carrier ultimately cannot operate without the certificate.
As a result, the carrier will not run any flights that may have been scheduled for the rest of 2026.
The last French airline that suffered a similar fate was vacation carrier Air Antilles.
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What happens when an airline loses its AOC
After a failed safety audit in December 2025, the carrier shuttling travelers between the French overseas territories of Guadeloupe, Martinique, and St. Bathélemy filed for bankruptcy when the Commercial Court of Pointe-à-Pitre ruled that it “was impossible to present a recovery plan through continued operations.”
Airlines that also lost their AOC licenses in 2026:
- Izhavia: Russian regional airline Izhavia had its AOC revoked by the country’s aviation regulatory agency in July 2026 as Western sanctions over Russia’s war in Ukraine left the country’s aviation industry crippled by lack of Western parts and a reduced ability to ensure maintenance standards.
- Bestfly Aircraft Management Aruba: The Caribbean branch of the African charter airline Bestfly Aircraft Management Aruba lost its AOC in May 2026. The Aruban branch was established in 2017 to run flights between the Caribbean countries of Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao.
- Starflite Aviation: Houston-based Starflite Aviation had its AOC license revoked in March 2026, amid FAA claims that owners falsified pilot training records to bypass safety audits.
- AlpAvia: Slovenian charter airline AlpAvia also shut down in March 2026 over financial problems.
- H-Bird: Charter airline H-Bird was declared bankrupt by a Swedish judge after losing its operating license at the end of 2025.
Related: Another airline pressured to shut down, faces liquidation risk
