The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on Wednesday retained the Directorate General of Civil Aviation's top-notch Category 1 ranking. This development comes days after India in the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) audit in November 2022 had enhanced its global ranking significantly.

The FAA told the DGCA that India complies with the Chicago Convention's worldwide requirements for aviation safety management.

“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” a statement from the DGCA read.

"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," the statement added.

Airlines from Category 1 nations are allowed to operate in, expand to, and codeshare with US airlines as well as serve US destinations.

Under its IASA program, the FAA assesses whether a nation's oversight of its air carriers that fly into the US, aspire to do so, or codeshare with a US air carrier complies with safety requirements set by the ICAO.

The IASA programme focuses on a nation's capacity to follow the international aviation Safety Standards and Recommended Practices found in the Personnel Licensing, Operation of Aircraft, and Airworthiness of Aircraft to the International Convention on Civil Aviation Chicago Convention.

With an Effective Implementation (EI) score of 85.65%, India greatly improved its position in the world rankings from its previous EI of 69.95%.

Image source: Hindustan Times