How to check a charter operator in the official registers

If you want to know how to check a charter operator, you don't have to take anyone's word for it, including ours. A few public lists do most of the work. At JETAURA we arrange charter flights as a broker; the flight itself is carried out by the operator. This guide shows where the official records are and where each one stops.

Start with the operator's name, not the aircraft

A registration mark on a photo feels like a good lead. It isn't, at least not on its own. The company that holds the operating certificate is what the authorities list, so the name is the key to every certificate list below.

The UK Civil Aviation Authority states: "By law you must be told the name of the operator." In other markets, ask for it in writing.

Why the certificate sits with the operator, and what the rules in the US, the EU and the UK say about it, is covered in our article on private jet safety and the certificate behind a charter.

Which register answers which question

The EU Air Safety List is a list of bans. Not appearing on it proves nothing about certification; it only means no ban applies.

In short: match the register to the question. Certificate lists answer "is this operator authorised?", aircraft registers answer "who is this aircraft registered to?", and the EU Air Safety List answers "is this airline banned?".

A step-by-step check

Before you work through the steps, find out which country certified the operator. In the EU, EASA explains that the AOC is issued by the competent authority, which is usually the national aviation authority of the operator's principal place of business. That tells you which list to open.

• 1. Get the operator's legal name in writing, together with the country that issued its certificate.
• 2. Open the certificate list of that country. FAA Part 135 list for the US, the CAA's AOC list for the UK, the national authority's list inside the EU. The LBA list in Germany, for example, shows an AOC number for each carrier.
• 3. For a non-EU operator flying into the EU, check EASA's list of Authorised Third Country Operators. It records each carrier's AOC number.
• 4. Check the EU Air Safety List for the operator's name.
• 5. Note the date on every list you used. The EASA TCO report shows a "last updated" timestamp, and the CAA says G-INFO shows an extract date that "confirms when the data is accurate to".

On step 4: the European Commission states that "the only authentic version of the EU air safety list is the version which is annexed to the latest applicable Commission Implementing Regulation", as published in the Official Journal of the European Union. If something depends on it, check the Official Journal.

In short: five steps, and the operator's name runs through all of them.

What this means for your enquiry

A register check only becomes useful once there is a trip to attach it to. Which operator can fly depends on the route, the date, the number of passengers and the aircraft type that suits the trip.

That is why an enquiry to JETAURA starts with your travel details: departure point, destination, date and passenger count. Our Aviation Team reviews available aircraft. You receive an offer tailored to your trip, not a flat "from" price. After your confirmation, we coordinate the next steps with the responsible operator.

What we do and what the operator does are separate:

• We review options, prepare an individual offer and coordinate after you confirm.
• The operator holds the certificate and carries out the flight.

A hypothetical example: you receive a quote for a flight from Germany. You ask for the operator's name and its certifying country. The answer is Germany, so you open the LBA list, find the carrier and note its AOC number and the date on the list. You check the name against the EU Air Safety List.

In short: our Aviation Team reviews options, the operator holds the certificate and carries out the flight, and the register check works on the operator's name.

Planning a trip already? Send a non-binding enquiry with your route, date and passenger count.

What does an entry on an official list tell you?

An entry on an official certificate list shows that an aviation authority had authorised the operator as of the date on the list. It is not a safety rating. EASA describes an air operator certificate as allowing "specific operations of commercial air transport", so which flights it covers depends on the operator's certificate.

For the wider question of what to look for beyond the certificate, see how to choose a private jet charter company.

Questions people also ask

What is the EU Air Safety List?

The EU Air Safety List is published by the European Commission. According to the Commission, it is "a list of airlines that are subject to an operating ban or operational restrictions within the European Union, due to not meeting international aviation safety standards." The legally authentic version is the one annexed to the latest Implementing Regulation in the Official Journal of the European Union.

What does G-INFO show about an aircraft?

G-INFO is the UK Civil Aviation Authority's search of the UK register of civil aircraft. It shows the registered owner of a UK-registered aircraft at the time the data was extracted. The CAA notes that the register "is not a register of legal ownership, and registration does not confirm legal title."

How do you check a charter operator from outside the EU?

For operators from outside the EU, EASA runs the Part-TCO authorisation, which it describes as "one single safety authorisation valid in 31 EASA Member States." EASA publishes a list of authorised third-country operators with the home state, the operator's name and its AOC number. According to EASA, operators only overflying without an intended landing do not need it.

Where can you find an operator's AOC number?

An operator's AOC number is shown on official certificate lists. EASA's list of Authorised Third Country Operators records the AOC number for each non-EU carrier, and national lists such as the one from Germany's Luftfahrt-Bundesamt show it for carriers they have licensed.

To see where a broker fits into all of this, read how a private jet broker works or how JETAURA works as a broker.

Planning a flight? Start with the details

About the author This article was written by the Aviation Team at JETAURA. JETAURA arranges private jet charter flights through a network of aviation partners and operators. We review suitable aircraft for each enquiry and put together matching options; the flight itself is carried out by the operator.

Sources (retrieved 15 September 2026; all lists are updated continuously)

• FAA: FAA-certificated Aircraft Operators (Legal Part 135 holders)
• UK Civil Aviation Authority: Making sure your flight is legal, G-INFO: what do the data fields mean? and Guidance on using G-INFO
• EASA: Air operator certificate (AOC), Third-Country Operators (TCO) and Authorised Third Country Operators, last updated 15 September 2026
• Luftfahrt-Bundesamt: Genehmigung deutsche Fluggesellschaften and list of approved air carriers, as of 15 September 2026 (German)
• European Commission: EU Air Safety List, list as of 9 June 2026

This article explains official registers for general information. It is not legal advice. For binding answers, contact the relevant aviation authority.