AAR Corp. hosted Jackie Black, Division Manager for Aircraft Maintenance at the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), at its Engineering Services and Airframe MRO facilities in Greensboro, North Carolina, highlighting the company’s expanding engineering capabilities and continued focus on safety, regulatory compliance and operational standards.
Black’s visit began at AAR’s Engineering Services facility, which became part of the company’s network following AAR’s acquisition of Aircraft Reconfig Technologies (ART) earlier this year. The acquisition expanded AAR’s engineering capabilities and brought an Organization Designation Authorization (ODA) into its portfolio, enabling qualified organisations to perform certain certification activities on behalf of the FAA.
During the visit, AAR’s Engineering Services team presented its capabilities and discussed how the ART acquisition has strengthened the company’s engineering expertise, certification capabilities and ability to provide specialised regulatory and technical support to customers.
Black subsequently visited AAR’s Greensboro Airframe MRO facility, where he led a site-wide safety stand-down. The session provided employees with dedicated time to discuss safety priorities, exchange best practices and reinforce the importance of maintaining a strong safety culture across MRO operations.
The discussion also focused on FAA priorities and the shared responsibility of regulators and industry in maintaining high standards of aviation safety. Following the safety session, Black participated in a roundtable with AAR inspectors, auditors and operational leaders, covering regulatory oversight, certification processes and the coordination of compliance activities across AAR’s FAA-certificated facilities.
A key area of discussion was AAR’s Certificate Management Unit (CMU), which oversees multiple FAA-certificated locations. AAR highlighted its experience operating under the CMU structure and the importance of maintaining consistent standards for compliance, safety, and quality across a geographically distributed MRO network.
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“We appreciated the opportunity for our team members to connect directly with FAA leadership and discuss the shared responsibility we all have in advancing aviation safety,” said Art Smith, Vice President and Chief Quality Officer, AAR Corp. “These conversations strengthen collaboration, encourage the exchange of ideas, and reinforce the culture of safety, quality, and compliance that guides our work every day.”
The engagement underscores the importance of close collaboration between aviation regulators and MRO providers as the industry continues to navigate increasingly complex certification requirements, expanding engineering capabilities, and the need for consistent safety and quality standards across global maintenance networks.
