BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 21. An
International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) by the US Federal
Aviation Administration (FAA) has started in Kazakhstan as part of
efforts to open direct air service between Kazakhstan and the US,
the Civil Aviation Committee of Kazakhstan's Ministry of Transport
said.


It is reported that the Ministry of Transport of Kazakhstan,
together with the Civil Aviation Committee, the Aviation
Administration of Kazakhstan (AAK) and the Embassy of Kazakhstan in
the US, has been working for two years to create the necessary
conditions for opening direct air service between Kazakhstan and
the US.


“Within the framework of this work, the International Aviation
Safety Assessment (IASA) of the US Federal Aviation Administration
(FAA) will be held from September 21 to 25, 2026,” the committee
said.


Ahead of the assessment, Kazakhstan's Vice Minister of Transport
Talgat Lastayev met with FAA experts who arrived in Kazakhstan.
During the meeting, the sides discussed the upcoming assessment and
further cooperation as part of efforts to improve aviation safety
and develop international air services between Kazakhstan and the
US.


The assessment is being conducted with regard to the state
aviation safety oversight system and is aimed at determining
whether Kazakhstan's aviation authorities comply with applicable
ICAO standards and recommended practices.







During the IASA, FAA experts will review aviation legislation,
subordinate regulatory legal acts and the state's ability to
conduct oversight in accordance with the eight critical elements of
the ICAO state safety oversight system.


The 2026 assessment is a continuation of preparatory work with
the FAA. A preliminary IASA technical review was conducted in
Kazakhstan from August 26 to 30, 2024, after which the sides
continued their cooperation to prepare for the current assessment.
The FAA expert team includes specialists in international aviation
law, aviation personnel licensing, airworthiness and flight
operations.


On September 24, the FAA team is scheduled to make a technical
visit to Air Astana in Astana, which has applied for authorization
from the US Department of Transportation (DOT) to conduct
commercial operations. The purpose of the visit is to verify
information obtained from the AAK as part of the transparency
process; the visit is not an inspection of the airline as an air
operator certificate holder.


FAA - the US federal agency responsible for civil aviation,
which, among other functions, assesses under its International
Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) program the ability of foreign
aviation authorities to provide state oversight of civil aviation
safety in accordance with the standards of the International Civil
Aviation Organization (ICAO).