ICAO Audit Program to Verify the Aviation Standards and Recommended Practices

A fundamental regulation of the Chicago Convention is related to the adoption of uniform rules or standards with regard to all aspects of the operation of aircraft and of the system required to support international air navigation. This is done by ICAO Council which is authorized by the Chicago Convention, when required, to regulate the ‘international standards and recommended practices’. These standards and regulations constitute the Annexes to the Convention. All States under the Chicago Convention are required to adopt regulations uniformed with those established under the Convention and the standards adopted by ICAO as embodied in the Annexes to the Convention. By 1998, there was no audit program to find out whether States incorporate international standards into their national laws. To ensure the States’ compliance with international standards, ICAO General Assembly passed Resolution A32-11, which established ‘ICAO’s Safety Oversight Program’ to assess member States’ compliance with these Standards. This article intends to assess the development of ICAO audit program to verify the member States’ compliance with ICAO’s ‘standards and recommended practices’ and finally to have a glance at Iran’s practice in this regard.