UPDATE: US Agency Boosts Venezuela Aviation Safety Rating=20 =20 Friday April 21, 3:09 PM EDT=20 (Adds more from U.S. statement, background)=20 CARACAS (AP)--U.S. aviation authorities upgraded Venezuela's safety ranking= on Friday, averting a ban that would have blocked most U.S. airlines from = flying to the country.=20 The U.S. Embassy in Caracas said in a statement that the "Federal Aviation = Administration is raising the safety rating of Venezuela to Category 1."=20 The decision came after an FAA team visited Venezuela late last month to ex= amine Venezuelan airlines' planes and procedures within the country's aviat= ion authority. The embassy said the FAA was pleased by steps taken by Venez= uela to improve air safety.=20 The Venezuelan government had protested its lower Category 2 ranking, which= prohibited Venezuelan airlines from flying their own planes to the U.S. or= from launching new services such as expansions in routes.=20 =20 The restrictions, in place since 1995, forced Venezuelan airlines to rent p= lanes and crew for flights to or from the U.S.=20 Venezuela had set an April 25 deadline by which the FAA had to drop the res= trictions or face retaliatory measures.=20 The decision narrowly averts a ban that potentially could have caused an ai= rline crisis between the two countries.=20 Venezuela had threatened to block all flights by Houston-based Continental = Airlines Inc. (CAL) (CAL) and Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines Inc. (DAL) (DAL= RQ), and restrict most flights by AMR Corp.'s (AMR) (AMR) American Airlines= (AMR) of Fort Worth, Texas.=20 U.S. Ambassador William Brownfield had countered that his government in tur= n would "with absolute certainty" prohibit Venezuelan flights to the U.S.= =20 The U.S. Embassy called the decision "excellent news for the thousands of p= assengers who fly between the United States and Venezuela."=20 Venezuela had claimed that the FAA restrictions locked its carriers out of = the U.S. market and were no longer justified after improvements to airline = safety and regulation. Local carriers lost 90% of the U.S.-Venezuela market= to their American competitors after the restrictions were imposed.=20 (END) Dow Jones Newswires 04-21-06 1509ET Copyright (c) 2006 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. =20 =09=C2=A9 2005 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. =20 Roger & Amanda La France