Emphasizing the pivotal role of foreign repair stations in the aviation industry, the Aeronautical Repair Station Association (ARSA) recently testified before the Senate subcommittee on aviation operations, safety and security regarding the oversight of foreign contract maintenance.

ARSA is an Alexandria, Va.-based international trade association whose primary members are companies that hold Part 145 repair station certificates issued by civil aviation authorities.

“Although the location of work may differ, quality does not,” ARSA managing director and general counsel Marshall Filler told the subcommittee. “The fact remains that foreign repair stations are subject to a tremendous amount of oversight by regulators, their customers and other entities.”

Filler said that while the reputation for quality, safety and security enjoyed by foreign aviation maintenance entities has been called into question by select interest groups, “numbers don’t lie. A 2005 survey conducted by ARSA revealed that the average FAA-certified foreign repair station is audited more than 74 times each year by a variety of oversight authorities and such stations maintain a robust safety record,” he said.