India has retained the US FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) IASA (International Aviation Safety Assessment) ‘Category 1’ status, the country’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation said on Wednesday.
Notably, air carriers of ‘Category 1’ countries are permitted to operate or expand their services to destinations in the US and codeshare with US air carriers.
Under the IASA programme, the FAA determines whether a country’s oversight of its air carriers that operate, or seek to operate, into the US, or codeshare with a US air carrier, complies with safety standards established by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).
The US FAA, under its IASA programme, had conducted an audit of DGCA in the areas covering aircraft operations, airworthiness and personnel licensing.
Subsequently, the IASA assessment was followed by final consultations in April 2022 and further review by the FAA in July 2022 and September 2022.
“Based on the positive outcomes of the assessment and follow-ups, FAA has 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,” the DGCA said in a statement.
“FAA has stated that DGCA has demonstrated a commitment towards ensuring an effective safety oversight of India’s aviation system and appreciated the positive manner in which DGCA has worked with them.”
According to the DGCA, India’s ‘Category 1’ determination has come at a time when Indian aviation is on a high growth trajectory and air carriers in India have major capacity induction and expansion plans.
India, in the recent ICAO audit in November 2022, had scored an ‘Effective Implementation’ (EI) of 85.65% from the previous EI of 69.95% 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.”