International Aviation Standards

Types

• IATA and ICAO apply international standards to airlines, air traffic control, general aviation (private flights) and aircraft design. Specifically, ICAO standards apply to air traffic control phraseology, airline security and national procedures, while IATA standards apply to airline management, aviation maintenance and aircraft design.

Benefits

• Uniform international air standards increase aviation safety by minimizing procedural differences across international borders. Additionally, ICAO and IATA standards allow developing countries to design their aviation regulations around proven, internationally used principles.

Limitations

• While ICAO and IATA provide international standards and regulations, each country can also designate and enforce its own aviation regulations and procedures. For instance, the U.S. air traffic control system is only partially compliant with ICAO phraseology standards.