After annus horribilis 2025, Indian DGCA to come under US scanner this November

NEW DELHI: Come Nov and the Indian Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) will come under the US Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) scanner. The effectiveness of its safety oversight will be checked on the heels of the worst year in decades for India (aviation-wise) — 2025 — which saw the tragic Air India Ahmedabad crash, series of chopper accidents in Uttarakhand, Delhi air traffic control system failing and then IndiGo schedule collapse in Dec.Fairing poorly in the upcoming FAA re-evaluation will mean Air India and IndiGo finding it difficult to add or start US flights, respectively and their aircraft and crew attracting heightened surveillance by American authorities. Other countries may start doing the same with Indian carriers on their soil.However, senior govt officials who confirmed the FAA check this winter, say they are “confident” Indian DGCA will fare well in the same and there’s no likelihood of a downgrade.

“This check happens every five years. We will score high on the established checklist parameters of this evaluation,” they said.The US aviation regulator maintains a list of countries with category I and II status, with some in the top tier never getting re-assessed by the FAA as they have established a strong safety oversight mechanism and mutually exchange data relating to evaluations for airworthiness, maintenance, and flight operations — something India is yet to do.

Despite being in FAA’s category I, the Indian DGCA keeps getting re-assessed from time to time as its technical staff strength has not kept pace with the rate at which civil aviation has grown here. Also India’s plans to have an independent Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) have remained on paper for about two decades. The DGCA operates under the aviation ministry’s control as an “attached office” and has been headed by non technical (read almost all IAS) officers for the last 18 years.The FAA assesses compliance of aviation safety standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO, a specialised agency of the UN) by a country whose carriers operate or plan to operate to the US or code sayers with American Airlines. India had last undergone this “International Aviation Safety Assessment” (IASA) programme in 2021 when India’s “effective implementation” (EI) score increased from 69.95% to 85.65% — indicating an improvement in compliance of ICAO standards.But despite this high score, FAA’s decision to re-assess DGCA’s oversight capability likely stems from concerns over an alleged lack of robust structural process. “In its current form, the DGCA has no long term 360-degree growth planning. An administrative and financially independent CAA that can hire the required number of technical staff and invest in technology required for effective oversight that not only meets but exceeds ICAO requirements was needed years back,” said people in the know.“This would also encourage the FAA to engage bilaterally with India and put in place a mechanism for mutual exchange of safety, certification and operational data. Such a process would help India to continuously remain in category 1 without facing periodic reassessments,” the said.While an independent safety regulator is not a panacea — something the world saw not so long back when the FAA was virtually found to have outsourced its oversight job to compatriot Boeing when the twin B737 MAX crashes happened. But after the second crash, the FAA finally woke up. If similarly 2025 does not goad India into action on setting up an independent & autonomous CAA, then Indian aviation will continue to face periodic audits, checks and re-assessments by foreign agencies.