WASHINGTON—A coalition working to develop best practices for preventing unapproved parts from flying has moved into the recommendation-development phase and is on track to meet its self-imposed timeline of delivering a final report this year.
“We haven’t yet settled on specific actions, but we have a good sense of what we need to focus on,” coalition co-chair John Porcari told FAA/European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) Safety Conference attendees June 11. “It includes things like document authentication and overall supplier standards and oversight. For each of these areas, we anticipate there will be actions that could be taken [immediately], others that are in the near term, and a final, long-term set.”
The Aviation Supply Chain Integrity Coalition (ASCIC) was formed earlier in 2024 as a direct response to a records-falsification scandal that made headlines late last year. UK-based distributor AOG Technics sold thousands of engine parts with forged regulatory approval paperwork—8130-3s and European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) Form 1s.
Parts allegedly sold as new by GE Aerospace and CFM for GE CF6 and CFM56 engines were found to have falsified records, and the companies determined they did not provide the parts to AOG Technics, as the distributor claimed. GE and Safran, its joint venture partner in CFM, spearheaded ASCIC’s formation. Other members are Airbus, American Airlines, Boeing, Delta Air Lines, StandardAero and United Airlines, though the coalition is getting input from many industry stakeholders.
Porcari said the group’s first phase, which focused on research, wrapped up recently. It included reviews of current standards, guidance, and industry initiatives, such as the Aviation Suppliers Association’s ASA-100 voluntary distributor standards and audit program. Phase two will work to codify lessons learned into action items that industry can use to bolster current programs or introduce new ones.
“We have been working with ASA and other organizations as part of this to better understand what works and what can be improved,” Porcari said. “What we do believe is that going forward, through basic document authentication efforts, supplier standards and perhaps parts traceability, we will have more opportunities to protect against the use of unauthorized parts.”
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