EU Transport Commissioner Antonio Tajani yesterday called for a worldwide blacklist of unsafe airlines after a Yemeni airliner crashed off the coast of the Indian Ocean archipelago of Comoros.

"My idea is to propose a worldwide blacklist similar to the one we have in the European Union," Mr Tajani told journalists in Brussels.

"If we want to achieve better safety I'm convinced that we need to have a worldwide blacklist, the European blacklist works pretty well in Europe," he added.

"Otherwise it's going to be difficult to have an adequate level of safety."

France's transport minister said that French inspectors had noted numerous faults on the Yemenia jet that crashed yesterday with 153 people on board and the company was being closely monitored by EU authorities. Mr Tajani said that he would be contacting Yemenia and that the European blacklist would be updated soon, noting that the airline was not currently on the list.

Deadly plane accidents since 2003

February 19, 2003: Iran - An Iranian Ilyushin-76 military plane crashes near Kerman in the south east of the country killing 302.

May 8: Democratic Republic of Congo - Some 200 people fall to their deaths in the Democratic Republic of Congo when the door of their plane opens in mid-air.

January 3, 2004: Egypt: A Boeing 737 belonging to Egyptian company Flash Airlines breaks up over the sea off the resort of Sharm El-Sheikh killing 148.

August 16, 2005: Venezuela: 160 are killed in the crash of a McDonnell Douglas plane belonging to the Colombian company West Caribbean Airways at Maracaibo in the north of the country.

September 5: Indonesia: 150 are killed as a Boeing 737-200 belonging to Mandala airlines crashes on the island of Sumatra.

July 9, 2006: Russia: 124 are killed when an Airbus A310 aircraft belonging to Russian company Sibir crashes on landing at Irkutsk in Siberia.

August 22: Ukraine: 170 die when a Russian Tupolev plane crashes in eastern Ukraine.

September 29: Brazil: A Boeing 737 belonging to airline GOL crashes in the Amazonian forest with 155 people on board. No survivors.

July 17, 2007: Brazil An Airbus A320 belonging to TAM airline crashes into a freight warehouse occupied by several workers on landing at San Paulo airport with 187 people aboard. 199 die.

August 20, 3008: Spain: A Spanair McDonnell Douglas-82, on a flight to the Canary Islands, crashes in Madrid airport minutes after take-off killing 154 people.

June 1, 2009: Brazil: An Airbus A330 belonging to Air France crashes into the Atlantic Ocean on its way from Rio de Janeiro to Paris killing 228 people.

June 30: Comoros: A Yemeni Airbus A310 jet, carrying 153 people, crashes into stormy seas as it comes into land in the Comoros islands.

The most deadly plane accidents in history remain the collision on March 27, 1977, between two Boeing 747s at Tenerife in the Canary Islands, in which 583 are killed, and the crash on August 12, 1985 of a Boeing 747 belonging to Japan Airlines flying between Tokyo and Osaka when 520 were killed.