The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), United States' aviation regulator, in its assessment has maintained that India meets the requirements under the International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) program of the Chicago Convention and its Annexes.
On India’s compliance with stipulated global parameters, FAA communicated to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) that India continues to retain Category 1 status. As per established practice, Air carriers of Category 1 countries are allowed to operate/ expand their services to destinations in the USA and codeshare with US air carriers.
The FAA has appreciated the DGCA stating that it has demonstrated a commitment to ensuring the effective safety oversight of India’s aviation system.
“India in the recent ICAO audit in November 2022 has scored an Effective Implementation (EI) of 85.65 per cent from the previous EI of 69.95 per cent thereby enhancing its global ranking significantly. The assessment by ICAO as well as FAA is a testimony to India's commitment to having an effective safety oversight for its civil aviation system,” a government news release noted.
Under the IASA program, the FAA determines whether a country’s oversight of its air carriers complies with safety standards established by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), which allows it to operate or seek to operate in the US aviation domain.
The IASA program focuses on a country's ability to adhere to international aviation Safety Standards and Recommended Practices contained in Annex 1 (Personnel Licensing), Annex 6 (Operation of Aircraft), and Annex 8 (Airworthiness of Aircraft) of the International Convention on Civil Aviation “Chicago Convention”.
