The transport minister expects Thailand-US direct flights to resume now the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has upgraded Thai aviation safety to category 1.
Minister Suriya Jungrungruangkit said on Tuesday that the FAA had announced on its website it had moved Thailand from Category 2 back to Category 1.
Category 1 countries are deemed to comply with International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) safety standards, while Category 2 countries do not.
“Thailand was placed in Categroy 2 in 2015… This is good news for the aviation industry of Thailand...,” he said.
The upgrade means that Thai airlines can now resume or extend flight routes from Thailand to the US, he said.
This gives Thai travellers a bigger choice of flight routes, schedules and air fares. Thai pilots will also have more job opportunities with international airlines, which earlier rejected them due to the previous Category 2 label for Thailand.
International tourists can also have more confidence in the Thai aviation industry in addition to more options when travelling to Thailand, which is good for tourism, Mr Suriya said.
The minister said that the FAA reviewed Thai aviation standards with the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand last November and confirmed in exchanges on March 10-12 that Thailand had dealt with concerns over safety issues.
Reports at the time Thailand was downgraded in 2015 said the deficiencies related to the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand's ability to enforce technical and safety regulations.
