Aviation Parts Trading Glossary: 30 Terms Buyers Actually Use

Each line is a working definition for a commercial conversation. If a contract, a release document, or an authority uses the same word, their definition controls. When a seller’s meaning differs from yours, write both down before you compare prices.

Thirty terms will not make anyone an engineer. They will stop a quote comparison that is really a comparison of two different promises.

AOG. Aircraft on ground. The aircraft cannot fly until the requirement is solved. Urgency changes the schedule. It does not change eligibility.

OEM. In everyday buying, the original equipment manufacturer or its authorised supply chain. Confirm the actual manufacturer and the document. A logo is not origin.

PMA. FAA Parts Manufacturer Approval, a combined design and production approval for a stated article and eligible products. It is not a generic aftermarket label, and it is not automatic acceptance everywhere.

Traceability. The link from the article to its source, status, and the organisations that speak for that history. How far back you need to go depends on the part and your own rules.

Airworthiness. Fitness for the intended operation under the applicable rules. A marketplace cannot declare it. The approved people and the authority’s framework do.

Authorised release. A document, such as an FAA 8130-3 or an EASA Form 1 where those apply, issued by an authorised person or organisation. One form does not cover every part, status, or country.

Serviceable. A condition claim that the article is fit for installation under the seller’s stated basis. Ask what document supports the word.

Overhauled. Worked and tested to a stated overhaul standard by an organisation allowed to do that work. It is not a synonym for repaired or inspected.

As removed. Taken off an aircraft or assembly and not subsequently released as serviceable. It can be honest inventory. It is not a finished serviceable unit.

New surplus. Unused material that is not necessarily still in the OEM’s current distribution chain. Age, storage, and documents still matter.

Shelf life. A time limit on storage or use for items such as seals, chemicals, and some survival equipment. Expired is a condition, not a negotiating point.

Effectivity. The aircraft, engine, or serial range an article is allowed to fit. A correct part number can still be the wrong effectivity.

Part number. The identifier of the design or catalogue item. Quote the number on the article or the controlling document, and label alternates as alternates.

Serial number. The identifier of one unit. It is how you stop two brokers selling the same story as two parts.

Condition. The status you are actually buying: new, surplus, serviceable, overhauled, repaired, or as-removed. Do not let a single adjective cover a missing status.

Lead time. The time until the unit is ready to move as promised, including work still to be done. It is not the time until someone replies.

Incoterms. Published trade terms that assign delivery cost and risk. Name the term and the place. “Door to door” without a term is a conversation, not a contract.

MRO. Maintenance, repair, and overhaul. The organisations that keep aircraft in service and that both consume and sometimes sell material.

CAMO. Continuing airworthiness management organisation, in the systems that use that term. It manages continuing airworthiness. It is not a parts trader by default.

Distributor. A seller that typically holds or is authorised to supply stock in its own name. Confirm the authority rather than assuming a catalogue implies it.

Broker. An intermediary who finds material, sometimes without taking title. Ask whether this deal is a brokerage or a sale by the broker as supplier.

Agent. On TabAir, a participant who may supply material or introduce a supplier, with the role written into the transaction. Commission is separate and deal-specific.

End user. The operator or organisation that will use the article. Export and sanctions rules can turn on who this is.

Export control. Rules that restrict certain items, destinations, and parties. A lawful domestic offer can become unlawful when the destination changes.

Sanctions screening. Checking parties and destinations against restricted-party rules. It is a stop-go test, not a formality after payment.

Receiving inspection. The buyer’s check that the article, the paperwork, and the purchase order describe the same thing before acceptance.

Back-to-birth. A request for history back to the original source. Some buyers require it for some parts. It is not automatically available or automatically required for every item.

Dual release. A release that refers to more than one authority’s requirements where the issuer is allowed to make that statement. Read the boxes. Do not assume both apply.

Life-limited part. An article whose use is limited in hours, cycles, or calendar time. Remaining life has to be in the record, not in the seller’s summary.

Configuration. The modification and build status of the article or the aircraft. Two units with one part number can still differ in a way that matters to installation.

Two quotes that use the same adjective can still be different promises. When a seller's meaning of serviceable, overhauled, or full trace differs from yours, write both meanings down before you compare prices. The regulation, the release document, or your quality manual controls when the words differ. These lines are for the commercial conversation.

Thirty terms will not make anyone an engineer. They should stop a purchase that is really a purchase of two different articles described with one part number. If a term is missing from your own manual, do not invent a company definition to fill the gap. Ask the function that owns acceptance.

Add the buyer's required sense of the word to the enquiry. 'Serviceable per our attached standard' is a better sentence than 'serviceable' alone. The glossary is a starting vocabulary, not the standard.

Life-limited, shelf life, effectivity, and configuration are not decorations. They change whether the unit in the photo can go on the aircraft in the request. If the seller cannot fill those fields, leave them open in the comparison. Do not let a glossary definition become a substitute for the missing data.

Back-to-birth, dual release, and authorised release are frequent sources of false comfort. Read the actual boxes and pages. A form name in a chat message is not the form. A release that mentions more than one authority still has to be one the issuer was allowed to make, for this article.

When you archive the deal, archive the sense in which you used the word. The next buyer inside your company should not have to guess whether 'overhauled' meant a full shop visit or a seller's shorthand.