TBM Staff - Mumbai The Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) recently concluded its audit of India’s aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), retaining India in Category 1. The US transportation watchdog conducts such checks every few years to assess whether aviation protocols are being adhered to, reports Gaurav Joshi for Simple Flying.
On April 26th, the FAA concluded a 7-day audit of the DGCA and was satisfied with India’s aviation safety standards. Not just that, but this time, India reportedly performed its best when it came to meeting the criteria laid down by the FAA and the ICAO, a DGCA official was quoted as saying,
The official also added that the FAA noted the regulatory and manual reforms carried out by DGCA and endorsed them. In a few cases, they also noted that it was work in progress and was likely to be completed in days ahead. Overall, everything was positive, and no negative views were expressed in their assessment.
The latest round of checks means that India will retain its Category 1 status, which is important, particularly for airlines that operate flights to the US.
The FAA routinely performs such audits, the last of which was in October 2021 following a delay due to the COVID pandemic. This month’s audit was a follow-up on last year’s when a five-member FAA team checked the safety guidelines, including the licensing of personnel and airworthiness.
The US officials had given some findings on procedures and came back this month to check on the work done on changes in procedures flagged during the last audit. The DGCA officials had earlier stated that work had been done on the FAA’s findings and that they were confident of retaining their Category 1 status.
