Counterfeit aviation parts are a worrying issue but they rarely make headline global news.
The AOG Technics scandal that continues to grip the commercial aviation industry is a very unusual case but nonetheless proves it’s still very possible for fake parts to enter strictly regulated supply chains.
Across the world, airlines are grounding planes as they hunt for fake parts. The company accused and being investigated by regulators is called AOG Technics, a London-based parts firm.
CFM International, owned by GE Aerospace (GE.N) and France’s Safran (SAF.PA), has so far reported that the number of engines suspected of containing falsely documented parts from AOG Technics had risen to 126, including 16 inside its own workshops after it inadvertently bought them indirectly.
CFM International issued the status report as it received documents turned over by AOG Technics on the order of a British judge, and said there had so far been no reports of any operational impact. However, American Airlines, United Airlines, and Southwest Airlines have pulled jets from their fleets as investigations into the potentially catastrophic faults are ongoing.
Alongside supplying fake parts for jet engines to airlines, AOG Technics has also been found to have promoted the business with fake LinkedIn profiles and lied about having a ‘virtual’ office in central London just a few minutes walk from Buckingham Palace.
Astute is on a mission to shield customers against inferior quality products and services. As such, our operations are run in accordance with quality processes including AS6081 that mitigate the risks of purchasing and supplying fraudulent/counterfeit electronic parts. Astute was the first European distributor to attain the AS6081 standard, and proudly the first distributor to gain AS6081 accreditations across either side of the Atlantic.
The bespoke Astute Counterfeit Avoidance Programme (ACAP) is market-leading in its process and offers a secure, warranted route for these occasions. For parts obtained through non-traceable routes, Astute will subject products to rigorous destructive and non-destructive testing through their ACAP scheme, encompassing the AS6081 anti-counterfeit standards.
Thousands of senior engineers and procurement professionals subscribe to our LinkedIn Market Intel newsletter – get yours here
For more help with looking at supply chain options, contact Astute Electronics
