Understanding FAA, EASA, and Aircraft Parts Certification

The FAA is the United States civil aviation authority. EASA is the European Union Aviation Safety Agency. Each publishes rules and approvals that matter to design, production, maintenance, and operations inside its system.

An approval names a holder, an article or organisation, and a scope. “FAA approved” on a spreadsheet, without the holder and the document, is not yet an approval you can use.

Production approvals, parts manufacturer approvals, authorised releases, and maintenance releases answer different questions. A new PMA article, a distributor’s surplus unit, and an overhauled component will not carry the same pack.

Bilateral arrangements can allow acceptance of certain approvals across systems, often with conditions. The buyer’s authority, the installer, and the lease may add further conditions. Look them up for the article. Do not apply a memory of the bilateral to every part number.

Even a correctly approved article has to match the aircraft’s configuration, the maintenance data, and the operator’s procedures. Effectivity, airworthiness directives, and life limits sit in that gap.

Receiving is where the certificate meets the box. If the serial number differs, the certificate is describing a different world from the one on the bench.

TabAir can ask participants for business and listing documents and can remove listings that misstate them. It is not the FAA, not EASA, and not a certification body. The legal notice says that directly.

Use the authorities’ own records and your approved organisation when you need to know whether an article may be bought and fitted. Use the marketplace to keep that evidence next to the offer.

The FAA is the United States civil aviation authority. EASA is the European Union Aviation Safety Agency. Each publishes rules and approvals that matter inside its system. 'FAA approved' on a spreadsheet, without the holder and the document, is not yet an approval you can use.

Production approvals, parts manufacturer approvals, authorised releases, and maintenance releases answer different questions. A new PMA article, a distributor's surplus unit, and an overhauled component will not carry the same pack. Bilateral arrangements can allow acceptance of certain approvals across systems, often with conditions. Look them up for the article. Do not apply a memory of the bilateral to every part number.

Even a correctly approved article has to match configuration, maintenance data, and the operator's procedures. Effectivity, airworthiness directives, and life limits sit in that gap. Receiving is where the certificate meets the box. If the serial number differs, the certificate is describing a different article.

TabAir can ask participants for business and listing documents and can remove listings that misstate them. It is not the FAA, not EASA, and not a certification body. The legal notice says that directly.

When you need to know whether an article may be bought and fitted, use the authorities' own records and your approved organisation. Use the marketplace to keep that evidence next to the offer, not instead of it.

If two offers cite different approvals, put the holder, the document, and the eligible product on the comparison sheet. The logos are not the comparison. The scope is.