First reported 2 Feb 2024•Latest report 30 May 2025
Definition
What this concern includes
Includes failures of regulatory airworthiness controls for aircraft, including mandatory inspection or certification, design approval, continued-airworthiness review and controlled life limits for safety-critical aircraft components.
Not included
Excludes routine operational maintenance, pilot competence, flight safety or accident-response failures where regulatory airworthiness control is not the identified concern.
Excludes non-aircraft equipment inspection or certification schemes, including amusement devices and other products.
Excludes generic product-quality or manufacturing defects unless the report specifically identifies a regulatory airworthiness-control failure.
Excludes failures confined to a particular aircraft component where no regulatory airworthiness-control deficiency is asserted.
Reports
2
Distinct published reports
Individual concerns
8
A report can raise multiple concerns
Date range
2024–2025
First to latest report issue date
Stated actions
12
Described in published responses
Reports over time
Reports over time
Reports about this concern issued each year.
* 2026 is projected from reports observed to 7 Sep 2026.
Most frequent recipients
Most frequent recipients
Reports about this concern sent to each recipient.
Civil Aviation Authority2
British Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association Limited1
European Union Aviation Safety Agency1
Aviation regulator2
Aviation sector body1
Concerns and responses across reports
Only concerns grouped under this recurring concern are included. Select any concern, action or position to view the source wording.
Leicester City and South Leicestershire
Concerns raised6
Failure to require provision of system and flight-testing data to specialist suppliers of critical parts
Lack of defined and controlled life limits for non-structural critical parts in aircraft designs already in service
Failure to require system-level failure modes analysis for potentially catastrophic failure modes
Failure to address rolling contact fatigue failure in critical-part bearing certification requirements
Lack of comprehensive and uniform standards for calculating design load spectrums for non-structural critical parts
Unavailability of comprehensive post-removal assessment programmes for critical parts in in-service helicopters
Responses linked to these concerns
Each statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
Actions described in response An action is something a respondent says it has done, is doing, or plans to do in response to the concern raised.11
Action
Develop a Certification Memorandum requiring applicable critical-bearing supplier data to be recorded and assessed before aircraft certification.
Stated by Civil Aviation AuthorityStated in progressThe respondent said that this action was in progress when they made their response on 10 June 2025.
Action
Share the Certification Memorandum with EASA for discussion.
Stated by Civil Aviation AuthorityStated plannedThe respondent said that this action was planned when they made their response on 10 June 2025.
Action
Advance rulemaking to clarify critical-part airworthiness status and life-limit definitions and publication for aircraft operators.
Stated by Civil Aviation AuthorityStated in progressThe respondent said that this action was in progress when they made their response on 10 June 2025.
Action
Review whether to clarify AMC1 29.571 and AMC1 27.571 so critical bearings are always considered.
Stated by European Union Aviation Safety AgencyStated in progressThe respondent said that this action was in progress when they made their response on 10 June 2025.
Action
Consider introducing new AMC to CS 29.927(a) addressing certification testing, inspection intervals and retirement times.
Stated by European Union Aviation Safety AgencyStated in progressThe respondent said that this action was in progress when they made their response on 10 June 2025.
Action
Advance rulemaking extending required safety assessments of rotor and rotor-drive systems to reduce component-failure hazard severity.
Stated by Civil Aviation AuthorityStated in progressThe respondent said that this action was in progress when they made their response on 10 June 2025.
Action
Adopt updates to Acceptable Means of Compliance addressing rolling contact fatigue in critical bearings classified as Principal Structural Elements.
Stated by Civil Aviation AuthorityStated completedThe respondent said that this action was complete when they made their response on 10 June 2025.
Action
Include a proposed CS-27 and CS-29 amendment in the next rulemaking notice under RMT.0128.
Stated by European Union Aviation Safety AgencyStated plannedThe respondent said that this action was planned when they made their response on 10 June 2025.
Action
Issue and publish certification guidance addressing compliance demonstrations for rotorcraft hybrid bearings.
Stated by European Union Aviation Safety AgencyStated completedThe respondent said that this action was complete when they made their response on 10 June 2025.
Action
Advance rulemaking requiring defective critical parts to be removed from service and returned to type certificate holders for analysis.
Stated by Civil Aviation AuthorityStated in progressThe respondent said that this action was in progress when they made their response on 10 June 2025.
Action
Consider EASA’s final Continued Integrity Verification Programme proposals and reflect them in equivalent UK provisions where appropriate.
Stated by Civil Aviation AuthorityStated plannedThe respondent said that this action was planned when they made their response on 10 June 2025.
Respondent positions A position is what a respondent says about the concern when they do not describe a specific action.5
Position
The existing regulatory framework adequately requires applicants to provide relevant testing information, so new prescriptive requirements are not needed.
Stated by European Union Aviation Safety AgencyExisting arrangements considered sufficientThe respondent said that existing arrangements were sufficient, so no further action was needed.
Position
Existing regulations adequately establish and control life limits for critical parts already in service, so their airworthiness status need not be redefined.
Stated by European Union Aviation Safety AgencyExisting arrangements considered sufficientThe respondent said that existing arrangements were sufficient, so no further action was needed.
Position
Existing certification provisions adequately address hazardous and catastrophic failures, so systematically mandating additional design mitigations could be counterproductive.
Stated by European Union Aviation Safety AgencyExisting arrangements considered sufficientThe respondent said that existing arrangements were sufficient, so no further action was needed.
Position
The claimed non-conservative loads calculation is not accepted as the sole cause of bearing failure, and existing methodology does not require complete reconsideration.
Stated by European Union Aviation Safety AgencyDisputes the concernThe respondent disagreed with part of the concern or the basis for it.
Position
Existing type-certificate-holder reporting and analysis obligations adequately address critical-part reliability, so no retrospective post-removal assessment programme is needed.
Stated by European Union Aviation Safety AgencyExisting arrangements considered sufficientThe respondent said that existing arrangements were sufficient, so no further action was needed.
West Yorkshire (Western)
Concerns raised2
Lack of licensing for use and registration of class BGD Luna 2 paragliders
Lack of regulatory quality and airworthiness control for class BGD Luna 2 paragliders
Responses linked to these concerns
Each statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
Actions described in response An action is something a respondent says it has done, is doing, or plans to do in response to the concern raised.1
Action
Revise, publish and distribute Paramotor Code guidance on maintaining SPHG aircraft airworthiness.
Stated by Civil Aviation AuthorityStated in progressThe respondent said that this action was in progress when they made their response on 12 February 2024.
Respondent positions A position is what a respondent says about the concern when they do not describe a specific action.2
Position
The organisation cannot compel pilots, including non-members, to join, undertake training or complete its qualification schemes.
Stated by British Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association (BHPAUnable to actThe respondent said that a constraint prevented them from taking the relevant action.
Position
Mandatory airworthiness requirements for SPHG aircraft are not proportionate because accident rates and risks to third parties remain low.
Stated by Civil Aviation AuthorityDisputes the concernThe respondent disagreed with part of the concern or the basis for it.
Pin
Get email alerts
Request correction
Includes failures of regulatory airworthiness controls for aircraft, including mandatory inspection or certification, design approval, continued-airworthiness review and controlled life limits for safety-critical aircraft components.
