Washington:
The US aviation regulator upgraded Serbia's safety rating on Friday, giving the country's airlines the right to fly into the United States.
The Federal Aviation Administration raised Serbia's rating for complying with safety standards of the International Civil Aviation Organization to category 1, after holding the country at a category 2 level of non-compliance since 2006.
The upgrade means the country's airlines can establish service to the US and code-sharing services with US carriers. Serbia earned the upgrade by making improvements to regulations and the operations of its civil aviation authority as recommended earlier this year by the FAA.
The step could benefit the flag carrier Air Serbia, which according to reports has said it hopes to establish transatlantic flights in the next two years.
Air Serbia, 49 per cent owned by Etihad Airways of the United Arab Emirates, operates 18 large and medium-sized aircraft flying mainly to European destinations.