US Regulator Keeps India’s Aviation Safety ranking at ‘Category 1’

The US regulator, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has maintained the highest aviation safety ranking for India, informed a senior official on 18 December.

FAA conducted an audit of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) in the month of July this year. The official told that the FAA yesterday officially confirmed that the rating of International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) of India remains at ‘Category 1’. ‘Category 1’ signifies that the carriers from the assessed nation may continue service in the US and participate in reciprocal code-share arrangements with US carriers.

The FAA completed an audit confirming India’s adherence to the standards laid down by the ICAO and oversight of Indian airlines. The DGCA officer said, “During discussions held with the FAA last month, the DGCA presented actions taken to address July 2018 audit findings”.

The US regulator carries out IASA programme to evaluate the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) of every country that has carriers operating to the US. An IASA evaluation determines whether the foreign CAA provides oversight to its carriers that operate to the US according to international standards.

Under the International Convention on Civil Aviation, every country is accountable for the safety oversight of its own air carriers. Other countries can only perform specific surveillance activities, mainly involving inspection of required documents and physical condition of aircraft.