Definition
An office within the FAA's Flight Standards Service responsible for developing, maintaining, and overseeing the regulations, policies, and standards that govern the certification of pilots, flight instructors, aircraft, and air operators in the United States.
Plain English
The FAA group that writes and manages the rules and standards for how pilots are trained and certified, and how aircraft and operators are approved to fly.
Context Anchor
You may see this term in FAA handbooks when the FAA explains which part of its organization creates or maintains pilot training and operating standards.
Why Pilots Care
The standards developed here set the training, operational, and certification requirements that directly determine what pilots must know and do to fly legally and safely.
Intuition Check
Do not read “Office” as just a room or a local building. Here it means an organized part of the FAA with a specific job: setting and maintaining safety standards.
Example Sentence 1
The Office of Safety Standards updates the airman certification standards that examiners use during practical tests.
Example Sentence 2
Flight schools must align their training programs with guidance issued by the Office of Safety Standards.