The Impact of Counterfeit Aircraft Parts in Aviation

Running head: THE IMPACT OF COUNTERFEIT AIRCRAFT PARTS IN AVIATION 1
THE RISK AND PREVENTION OF UNAPPROVED AVIATION PARTS
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Institutional Affiliation

THE IMPACT OF COUNTERFEIT AIRCRAFT PARTS IN AVIATION 2
ABSTRACT
Unapproved aviation parts imply to those aircraft parts that have not been cleared by the civil
aviation authorities to be installed on an aircraft. In the United States, examples of approval
would be Parts Manufacturer Approval and Technical Standard Orders. A part becomes
‘unapproved’ or ‘counterfeit’ when they are manufactured without authority from an aviation
agency.
Suspected Unapproved Parts (SUP) are a real challenge that threatens public safety. The
general public depends on the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the aviation
industry to provide safe and reliable air transportation and ensure that aircraft are properly
maintained and approved for flight. Therefore, there is need for both the government and the
aviation industries to combine their efforts in curbing counterfeit parts from being used in
aircraft. There have been several aviation accidents which always have high fatality rate, and
most of them are attributed to counterfeit or unapproved parts which end up being used on
these airplanes. This study aims to identify and evaluate the risks involved in using
counterfeit aviation parts and evaluate requirements of a program that can help identify,
report and remove suspected unapproved parts and components in the aviation maintenance
industry.

THE IMPACT OF COUNTERFEIT AIRCRAFT PARTS IN AVIATION 3
RISK INVOLVED IN THE USE OF UNAPPROVED AVIATION PARTS
The costliest risk in the use of unauthorised aviation parts is the risk of fatal accidents.
Aviation accidents are usually rare but they are known to have a hundred percent fatality rate
if not slightly less. Most of these accidents are attributed to use and application of counterfeit
aviation components in aircrafts. According to Irish Times, there was a plane crash in the
year 1989 that claimed the lives of 55 people in the North Sea. The crash was attributed to the
use of unfit components as spare part for the plane.
Apparently, the tail fin fell off from the aircraft. Another plane, DC-10 crashed within
the same year in Chicago. The claim was that bolts securing the engine loosened, and it fell
off (The Irish Times, 2015). According to Irish Times, the US National Transportation Safety
Board found that the underlying factors of the numerous plane crashes and emergency
landings with all kinds of planes was unapproved parts. The estimated number of serious
flight mishaps or accidents between the years 1973 and 1993 by the FAA due to counterfeit
parts was 166.
Another risk posed by the use of illicit aviation commodities is the financial implication. A
lot of money that can be used to purchase better parts that are in good condition and with
better service and lifespan is lost to these counterfeit parts. This ends up becoming costly in
the long run because of the high cost of repairing and maintaining unapproved components.
They lack warranty documents as most of them are bought under the counter with little or no
certification or supporting documentation. Havocscope, a company that specializes in Global
Black Market Information, outlines the financial losses to counterfeit aircraft parts to be at 2
Billion dollars. According to Havocscope, the year 2011 alone recorded a total of 1,800
incidents of unapproved electronic parts which were sold to the US military. These
counterfeit parts were used on aircraft and helicopters as well as weapons systems. This
incurred a 5-15% decrease in US military weapons system reliability. According to