Based in
Cologne, Germany, the agency was created on 15 July 2002 as the "European Aviation Safety Agency", and reached full functionality in 2008, taking over functions of the
Joint Aviation Authorities. It was renamed the "European Union Aviation Safety Agency" in 2018. The responsibilities of the agency include the analysis and research of safety parameters, authorising foreign operators, and advising the
European Commission on the drafting of
EU legislation. It also implements and monitors safety rules (including inspections in the member states), gives
type certification of aircraft and components, and approves organisations involved in the design, manufacture and maintenance of aeronautical products. As part of
Single European Sky II (SES-II), an initiative to standardise and coordinate all
air traffic control over the EU, the agency has been given additional tasks, which were implemented before 2013. Since 4 December 2012, EASA is able to
certify functional airspace blocks if more than three parties are involved. In 2012, the
European Court of Auditors (ECA) found that the agency did not have an agency-specific
conflict of interest policy and procedures. EASA did not obtain or assess the declarations of interest for staff, management board, board of appeal and experts. In its report, ECA declared that: It was recommended that the organisation adopt its own ethical standards because the then-existing condition exposed the agency to a substantial crisis of credibility as well as the incidence of favouritism and conflict of interest. For member-countries and other stakeholders, fairness is of paramount importance. This is because the European Union has been increasingly strengthening EASA's role, giving the agency independence. A discussion regarding the permission for the agency to impose financial penalties for safety violations is also underway. ==Responsibilities==