NICHOLAS IONIDES / SINGAPORE
South Korea's aviation safety oversight rating was expected to be downgraded to Category 2 this week under the US Federal Aviation Administration's International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) programme. As Flight International went to press, the FAA said it had completed its inspection and a statement would be made soon.
The country's minister for construction and transportation, Oh Jang-seop, met US Embassy representatives in Seoul and was told it was "highly likely" that the downgrade would be formalised this week, a Korea Civil Aviation Bureau (KCAB) source said.
Final "consultation meetings" between the FAA and KCAB were scheduled provisionally for 22-23 August in Seoul. While there was a possibility that South Korea would avoid a downgrade by showing that its oversight of the local industry had improved significantly, the source said it was unlikely.
"We are continuing to work with the FAA regarding the IASA programme," said the source. "Maybe it will not happen-but they [US Embassy officials] said it is highly likely."
In May FAA inspectors gave the KCAB three months to respond to 10 areas of concern about oversight of the local industry (Flight International, 10-16 July). The FAA's follow-up audit was carried out 11 months after an International Civil Aviation Organisation audit also noted areas of concern.
A downgrade will put a strain on already deteriorating relations between the USA and South Korea at a time when Boeing is competing with European companies for high-stakes arms deals.
It will also impact on Korean Air (KAL) and Asiana Airlines because a Category 2 rating will bar US operators from codesharing on their flights, and restrict all Korean carriers from increasing services to the USA unless they use wet-leased aircraft from Category 1 countries.
KAL, which has been working to improve its safety standards in recent years after suffering five major hull losses between 1997 and 1999, had been hoping to resume codeshare operations with SkyTeam Alliance partner Delta Air Lines this year.
Delta stopped putting its passengers on KAL aircraft after an April 1999 crash of a Boeing MD-11 freighter at Shanghai.
Asiana will also be affected by an IASA downgrade because American Airlines codeshares on four of the carrier's transpacific routes.
Source: Flight International
