Despite last-minute pleas for restraint from President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) downgraded Mexico’s air safety ranking to Category 2 from Category 1, following a five-month reassessment of this nation’s civil aviation authority, the Agencia Federal de Aviación Civil (AFAC).
The government of Mexico does not currently meet International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) safety standards, the FAA said in a press release.
While the new rating allows Mexican air carriers to continue existing service to the United States, it prohibits any new service and routes. U.S. airlines will no longer be able to market and sell tickets with their names and designator codes on Mexican-operated flights, the FAA said.
According to the FAA, a Category 2 rating means that the country’s laws or regulations “lack the necessary requirements to oversee the country’s air carriers in accordance with minimum international safety standards, or the civil aviation authority is lacking in one or more areas such as technical expertise, trained personnel, record keeping, inspection procedures, or resolution of safety concerns.”
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