The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has informed the Directorate-General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) that India meets international standards for aviation safety oversight of the Chicago Convention and continues to retain FAA International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) Category 1 status, DGCA officials said on Wednesday.
“Based on the positive outcomes of the assessment and follow-ups, FAA informed DGCA on April 12, 2023, that India meets the international standards for aviation safety oversight of the Chicago Convention & its Annexes and continues to retain FAA IASA Category 1 status, which was last assessed in July 2018,” a statement from the DGCA read.
Air carriers of Category 1 countries are permitted to operate and expand their services to destinations in the US and establish codeshare agreements with US air carriers. This programme determines whether a country’s oversight of its airlines that operate, or seek to operate into the US, or codeshare with a US airline, comply with safety standards established by the International Civil Aviation Organisation.
The IASA programme also focuses on a country’s ability to adhere to international aviation safety standards, and recommended practices for personnel licensing, operation of aircraft, and airworthiness of aircraft) to the International Convention on Civil Aviation “Chicago Convention.”
India, in the recent ICAO audit in November 2022, 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 of having an effective safety oversight for its civil aviation system.