Aero-News has learned a conference on suspected unapproved aircraft parts will be held in Australia next month. People from throughout the aviation industry are urged to take part in the conference, which will be held August 21-23 at the Sydney Hilton.

The meeting will be run by Australia's Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) and the US Federal Aviation Administration.

The conference will deliver a detailed understanding of the processes that must be used to identify and avoid suspected unapproved aircraft parts. It will also provide a full explanation of the Federal Aviation Administration’s important Suspected Unapproved Parts Program.

Unapproved aircraft parts pose a real danger to aviation safety because the design and production quality of the components are unknown.

Identifying unapproved parts can be difficult because they often appear the same as approved parts, unknowingly putting the safety of the aircraft at risk.

This means airlines, maintenance organizations, aviation manufacturers and parts distributors must have systems for the detection and reporting of unapproved parts.

Aviation regulators such as CASA and the FAA then take responsibility for making sure information on suspected unapproved parts is provided to the aviation industry to make further detection and avoidance possible.

Next month’s conference will provide the latest information on suspected unapproved parts issues and allow people taking part to ask questions of international experts.

Representatives with CASA tell ANN that air operators, aircraft and parts manufacturers, parts distributors, repair stations and anyone who handles aircraft parts will get valuable knowledge from taking part.

FMI: www.casa.gov.au/sup2006