Central idea

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of the US has retained the “Category 1” status for India’s aviation safety oversight following a review.
The FAA uses the International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) program to determine whether a country’s oversight of its airlines that operate or wish to operate to the US or enter into codeshare partnerships.

What is the IASA Program?

The International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) program is conducted by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
The program evaluates the safety oversight of civil aviation authorities in countries worldwide.
It 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 UN International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).
The IASA program focuses on three broad areas, including personnel licensing, operation of aircraft, and airworthiness of aircraft.
Countries are rated as Category 1 if they comply with international safety standards, or Category 2 if they do not comply with international safety standards.
The IASA program is conducted over a one-year period, which includes physical audits and a further review.

The assessment by the ICAO as well as the FAA is a testimony to India’s commitment of having an effective safety oversight for its civil aviation system.
In November 2021, the ICAO conducted an audit, and India scored an Effective Implementation (EI) of 85.65%, an improvement from the previous EI of 69.95%.