El Al will have to be recertificated for Israel to regain its Category 1 status under the US Federal Aviation Administration's International Aviation Safety Assessment programme.
"We have made it clear to El Al, and the airline is co-operating with us fully in an effort to complete the process as soon as possible," said Giora Romm, director general of Israel's civil aviation authority.
Romm said that the effort is now focused on the full set of operational documentation so that it is in full compliance with the air navigation regulations.
The demand relates directly to El Al's US flights.
"Many documents have to be written and we will work with the airline to expedite the process," said Romm.
The Israeli CAA director general refused to assess when Israel might regain the Category 1 safety status, despite the fact that the Israeli parliament (Knesset) recently approved a new aviation law.
The FAA downgraded Israel's status to Category 2 in January 2009.
Source: Flight International
