India's aviation safety ranking downgraded

In the first-ever move that would adversely affect flight operations to the US, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) today downgraded India's aviation safety ranking, bringing it below Pakistan and at par with countries like Ghana, Barbados and Bangladesh.
India termed as "very disappointing and surprising" the FAA's decision to downgrade India from Category I to II after two safety audits carried out in September and December last year.
Air passengers to and from the US may have to face the brunt as Indian airplanes would have to go through more engineering and other safety checks on the American soil.
As per the FAA, the downgrade means that the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) does not meet the safety standards set by UN agency International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).

The FAA downgrade of India's safety rankings, conveyed to DGCA chief Prabhat Kumar, would effectively bar Air India and Jet Airways from increasing flights to the US from the current level.
They would also not be able to enter into any new code-share relationships with any US airline.

The downgrade does not mean that these airlines are unsafe but show that the DGCA's safety oversight is not enough to properly monitor safety performance of Indian carriers, officials explained.
While the move may not immediately impact the 28-a-week flights (21 of Air India and 7 of Jet Airways) to the US, it would make it difficult for these two Indian carriers to expand their operations to other American cities.

At present, Air India operates to Chicago and New York while Jet Airways flies only to New York.
It could also have an adverse impact on Jet's entering into a codeshare with an American carrier and Air India's joining the Star Alliance.