US Ambassador to Vietnam Daniel Kritenbrink (L) presents the FAA’s certificate to the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam in a ceremony on February 15, 2019 (Photo: VNA)

The FAA said a Category 1 rating means Vietnam’s civil aviation meets International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) standards. Vietnam has been qualified because it checked and finalised 8 issues relating to the legal system, flight safety standards and regulations, and specialized guidelines on training, especially for key personnel involved in air safety assessment. CAT 1 is a mandatory condition for airlines to open routes to the US. It’s an international recognition of flight safety standards and regulations.

With Category 1 status, Vietnamese carriers will be able to establish direct services to the US and codeshare with US carriers upon completion of the necessary remaining steps.

Vo Huy Cuong, Deputy Director of Vietnam’s Civil Aviation Authority, said: “Direct flights mean there will be no transit for flights from Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City to any state in the US. Our plan is to operate flights to Los Angeles or San Francisco. Vietnam has obtained CAT1 and Vietnamese airlines can now apply to fly to the US.”

Mr. Cuong said that to open non-stop flights to the US, airlines will have to consider a lot of issues such as planes capable of 15 to 19-hour flights, pilots, costs, and profits.