Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Attache Daniel Jacob met with the chairman of the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs during his visit to Dhaka on June 9-12.

These meetings continue the close cooperation needed to achieve Bangladesh’s goal of US-Bangladesh direct flights, read a press release, adding that Jacob explained the process for attaining direct flights.

Bangladesh needs to achieve a ‘Category 1’ safety rating, which requires passing the US FAA’s International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA). A Category 1 rating ensures that Bangladesh complies with critical International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) standards and recommended practices. FAA will carry out the IASA for the Category 1 rating, at the request of the CAAB. However, the CAAB has not yet made a request to the FAA for an IASA.

If CAAB achieves a Category 1 rating, the US Transportation Security Administration (TSA) will conduct a separate assessment and inspection to make sure that Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport and Biman Airlines meet relevant security requirements for direct flights between the United States and Bangladesh.

For the past several years, the FAA and TSA have been providing free technical assistance to CAAB and Biman Airlines to achieve international safety and security standards.

The US government is also providing free airport screening equipment to Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport and providing training to Bangladeshi aviation officials so that Bangladesh can meet the highest international security standards, reads the release.