International Aviation Safety Assessment Program


The International Aviation Safety Assessment Program is a program established by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration in 1992. The program is designed to evaluate the ability of a country's civil aviation authority or other regulatory body to adhere to international aviation safety standards and recommended practices for personnel licensing, aircraft operations and aircraft airworthiness.
Regulatory authorities in any sovereign country are obliged under the Chicago Convention to exercise regulatory oversight over air carriers within the state. Such international standards and recommended practices are laid down by the United Nations' technical agency for aviation, the International Civil Aviation Organization.

History of the IASA Program

In the aftermath of the January 25, 1990 crash of Avianca flight 52 on Long Island, New York, questions emerged about how the FAA conducted safety oversight of foreign air carriers flying into the United States. In response, the FAA established the IASA program in 1992.

IASA Category Ratings

Following an IASA audit, a country is assigned one of two ratings:
Carriers from Category 2 countries are allowed to continue operating to the United States as before the assessment, but are not allowed to expand their service to the USA or codeshare with US carriers. Additionally, such carriers may be subject to heightened ramp inspections.