WILLEMSTAD – Curaçao has taken a long-awaited legal step in the reform of its civil aviation oversight system, but a return to the highest safety category of the United States Federal Aviation Administration is still not guaranteed.
The Curaçao Civil Aviation Authority has now been formally established through a decree published on June 19. The decision gives the authority a clearer legal position within the Ministry of Traffic, Transport and Urban Planning and addresses one of the shortcomings previously identified by international aviation regulators.
However, the government itself acknowledges that more legislation is still needed before the reform process is complete. A new Aviation Ordinance and several additional regulations still have to be finalized. These include rules for air transport, airports, air navigation services, aviation security and safety management.
The timeline means that Curaçao may have to wait until the end of 2027 before the necessary legal package is fully in place. Even then, regaining FAA Category 1 status will depend on whether Curaçao can demonstrate that its aviation oversight system meets international safety standards in practice.
The FAA downgraded Curaçao to Category 2 in 2012. Under the FAA’s International Aviation Safety Assessment program, the focus is not on the safety of individual airlines or airports, but on the ability of the national aviation authority to regulate and supervise civil aviation in accordance with ICAO standards.
The practical consequences are important for Curaçao’s aviation ambitions. With a Category 2 rating, air carriers from Curaçao cannot establish new service to the United States. They may continue existing service, but expansion is restricted. Code-share arrangements with U.S. carriers are also limited.
For an island that depends heavily on air connectivity for tourism, business and investment, the rating has strategic importance. Curaçao has been working for years to strengthen its aviation framework, especially as the island seeks to position itself as a stronger regional aviation and tourism hub.
The recent decree solves one legal gap by formally establishing the CBA. But ICAO and FAA concerns went further than the mere existence of the authority. They also involved staffing, training, funding, technical expertise, inspector powers, enforcement mechanisms and the ability to keep aviation regulations up to date.
Another key reform still pending is the transformation of the CBA’s leadership into a more independent structure. The government plans to designate the director-general of the authority as an independent administrative body by national ordinance. This would place supervision and enforcement more at arm’s length from political decision-making.
That step is considered crucial because effective aviation oversight requires technical independence, sufficient resources and the power to act when safety rules are not followed.
The latest decree therefore gives Curaçao a stronger foundation, but the path back to FAA Category 1 remains long. The next challenge is implementation. Curaçao must show that the new structure can operate independently, enforce rules effectively and maintain the standards required by international aviation authorities.