The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has upgraded Thailand’s Category 1 International Aviation Safety Assessment rating, which will now allow Thailand-based airlines to fly directly to the US.
The FAA updated the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand’s (CAAT) status on April 21, 2025, from Category level 2 to 1 on its International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) program
According to the FAA, when another country’s air carrier flies into the US or codeshares with a US air carrier, they must meet safety standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).
“Through the IASA program, the FAA focuses on a country’s ability, not the ability of individual air carriers, to adhere to those international safety standards and recommended practices,” the FAA stated on its website.
The FAA’s reassessment process on Thailand officially began in November 2024, with the final assessment procedures conducted in March 2025. The ICAO has eight categories in which a country’s civil aviation authority is measured: primary aviation legislation, specific regulations, the civil aviation system and safety oversight functions, technical personnel qualification and training, technical guidance, tools, and the provision of safety-critical information, licensing and certification obligations, surveillance obligations, and resolution of safety concerns.
Following its reinstatement to a Category level 1, the CAAT is preparing to resume Thai carrier’s services to the US. This also includes codeshares with other airlines flying to the US.
Thailand has held a Category 1 rating since 1997, but was downgraded by the FAA in 2015 after failing to meet ICAO standards. The last operated non-stop service between US and Thailand was by Thai Airways in April 2012, a Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) to Bangkok Suvarnabhumi International Airport (BKK) flight.
