U.S. aviation watchdog retains India’s safety category after review

Source: The post is based on the article “U.S. aviation watchdog retains India’s safety category after review” published in The Hindu on 13th April 2023

What is the News?

The US aviation safety regulator, the Federal Aviation Administration(FAA) has retained the “Category 1” status for India’s aviation safety oversight following a review.

How does the Federal Aviation Administration(FAA) determine a country’s aviation safety?

The International Aviation Safety Assessment(IASA) programme of the FAA determines whether a country’s oversight of its airlines that operate or wish to operate to the U.S. or enter into codeshare partnerships with U.S. carriers comply with safety standards established by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).

The assessment focuses on three broad areas which include: 1)  personnel licensing 2) operation of aircraft and 3) airworthiness of aircraft.

What did the FAA find about India’s aviation safety?

FAA has said that India meets the international standards for aviation safety oversight of the Chicago Convention and it continues to retain FAA Category 1 status.

Air carriers of Category 1 countries are permitted to operate/ expand their services to destinations in the USA and codeshare with US air carriers.

Significance: India’s Category 1 status 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.