FAA warns airlines on unapproved GE engine parts sold by UK firm

New York: US aviation regulators warned airlines and other industry players that London-based AOG Technics improperly sold bushings for a longstanding type of General Electric jet engine.

The alert, known as an Unapproved Parts Notification, is the Federal Aviation Administration’s first formal warning to the US aviation sector over the potential risks posed by thousands of spare jet-engine parts sold with forged airworthiness documentation by London-based AOG Technics Ltd.

AOG Technics improperly sold bushings for GE’s CF6 engine family without the jet-engine manufacturer’s approval, according to the notice. AOG sold the parts with falsified documents, the agency said. The engine has been used on a number of wide-body jets including Boeing Co.’s 747

Airlines, maintenance providers and regulators across the globe have been scouring their records to hunt down AOG-supplied parts after European authorities in August determined the London-based parts broker had supplied the suspect components.

The widening scandal has shaken an industry where safety is the guiding principle, with exacting standards for aircraft manufacturing and maintenance that demands each component be verified.

As many as 96 engines have been fitted with suspect parts from AOG, according to jet-engine makers GE and Safran. Airlines including United Airlines Holdings, Southwest Airlines and Virgin Australia Airlines have found AOG parts in their fleets, and removed them.