Legal Interpretations
Fernandez-Focused Air Advising 2017
Summary
The Question
Does the FAA accept EASA-approved repair design data for minor repairs on U.S.-registered aircraft without further FAA review or DER approval?
Background
Focused Air Advising submitted two minor non-structural composite and plastic repairs approved under an EASA Design Organisation Approval, after some repair stations insisted such repairs needed approval through a DER.
The FAA’s Interpretation
Yes, if the criteria in the U.S.-EASA Technical Implementation Procedures (TIP) are met: the FAA has certificated or validated the product, EASA acts for the State of Design, the approval is substantiated by a repair design approval letter or a DOA-issued approval, and the repair is not in an area subject to an FAA AD. The data is then accepted as FAA-approved without application or compliance findings.
- Requester
- Fernandez
- Organization
- Focused Air Advising
- Issued
- December 19, 2017
- Subject
- Aircraft & Parts Certification
Regulations Cited
- 14 CFR 3.3
- 14 CFR Part 21
Unreadable text from the scan (such as a barcode or stamp) is left out of the text below; the original letter shows it exactly.
Page 1
U.S. Department
of Transportation
Federal Aviation
Administration
DEC 19 7017
Mr. Jesus Femandez
President
Focused Air Advising
5284 N.W. 163rd Street
Miami Gardens, FL 33014
Re: Legal Interpretation on FAA Acceptance of
BASA-Approved Repair Design Data
Dear Mr. Fernandez:
Office of the Chief Counsel
800 Independence Avenue, S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20591
This letter is in response to your July 17, 2017 request for a legal opinion on whether the FAA may accept, without further review, repair design data approved by the European Aviation Safety Agency of the European Union (EASA) for parts to be installed on a U.S.-Registered aircraft. You attached documentation for two minor repairs, and asked whether these types of repairs are automatically approved under the Technical Implementation Procedures for Airworthiness and Environmental Certification (TIP) between the United States and EASA. The answer is yes, if the criteria set forth in the TIP are met. 1
You referenced (Section 3.3.2. l in TIP Revision 5) in support of your premise that the FAA may accept BASA-approved design data without further review. That section, as it applies to minor repairs, states in pertinent part:
3.3 .2.1 FAA Acceptance of EASA Repair Design Data.
(a) General (1) Except as provided in (b) below, the FAA shall accept EASA approved design data produced under EASA Part 21 Subpart Mused in support of major or minor repairs regardless of the State of Design of the product, part, or appliance, if:
(i) the FAA has certificated/validated the product or appliance, and 1 Note, however, that the FAA's regulations do not require that minor repairs be performed in accordance with FAA-approved data.
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(ii) EASA is acting on behalf of the State of Design for the repair design data, and (iii) EASA repair design data approval is substantiated via a repair design approval letter or a repair design approval issued under a DOA.... , and (iv) the repair is not in an area that is subject to an FAA AD, ....
In these circumstances, repair design data are considered to be approved by the FAA following its approval under EASA's system. This process does not require application to the FAA or compliance findings to the FAA certification basis.
Accordingly, under TIP Revision 5, which was in effect between September 15, 2015, and September 22, 2017 (at which time it was superseded by Revision 6), if the above criteria were met, minor repairs approved under EASA Design Organization Approvals required no further FAA approval.
The applicable provisions of TIP Revision 6 (Section 3.3.5.2) now in effect yield essentially the same result. This section, as it applies to both major or minor repairs, states in pertinent part:
3.3.5.2 FAA Acceptance of EASA Repair Design Data.
(a) The FAA shall accept EASA approved design data produced under EASA Part 21 Subpart Mused in support of major or minor repairs regardless of the SoD [State of Design] of the product, part, or article, if:
(1) The FAA has certificated/validated the product or article;
EASA is acting on behalf of the SoD for the repair design data;
EASA repair design data approval is substantiated via a repair design approval letter or a repair design approval issued under a DOA [Design Organization Approval]. ....
(4) The repair is not in an area that is subject to an FAA AD, ....
In these circumstances, repair design data approved by EASA are accepted without further review as approved by the FAA. This process does not require application to the FAA or compliance findings to the FAA certification basis.
. i
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I hope the above responds to your concerns. This response was prepared by Edmund Averman, an attorney in the Regulations Division of the Office of the Chief Counsel, and coordinated with the Aircraft Maintenance Division in the FAA's Flight Standards Service. If you have further questions on this matter, please contact the Aircraft Maintenance Division at (202) 267-1675.
Sincerely,
Lorelei Peter
Assistant Chief Counsel for Regulations, AGC-200
Charles M. Trippe, Jr.
Office of the Chief Council
800 Independence A venue SW
Washington, DC 20591
Subject: Request for Legal Interpretation ofFAA Acceptance of EASA Repair Design Data
Dean Mr. Trippe:
I am cordially asking your office for interpretation of FAA Acceptance ofEASA Repair Design Data for parts installed in N registered aircraft when the repair is being done by a FAA certificated facility with an EASA certificate. Attached are two minor r~~irs approved under EASA Design Organisation Approval EASA .21 J .560 for non~iructural composite and plastic repairs. Under the I!!:.between the FAA and EASA section 3.3.2. l, this repair should be considered automatically approved for N registered aircraft when the work is being performed by a US based Repair Station with an BASA certificate. However, I am getting push back from certain repair stations stating that these repairs must be approved under a repair specification with a DER approval. Can you please clarify if the repairs attached are automatically approved or if they must go through a DER to become approved?
Sincerely,
Jesus Fernandez
Presideni
Focused A ir Advising
5284 Nw. 163 St. • Miami Gardens, Florida 33014 •Tel: 305-901-1535 • Fax: 305-901-1554 • www.focusedair.com
Regulations Referenced
Snapshot retrieved August 6, 2026.