The owners of aircraft registered through U.K.-based Southern Aircraft Consultancy Inc. (SACI) have been notified their aircraft were grounded after the FAA determined the registrations were invalid because the company was in violation of U.S. citizenship requirements when it submitted the applications.
The agency demanded the return of the certificates within 21 days.
On Thursday, SACI sent a letter to their customers advising that it had reached an agreement with Valiair, a U.S.-based company that would be taking over ownership of Southern Aircraft Consultancy Inc.
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The goal of the transition is “restoring compliance and getting all of your aircraft back in the air as soon as possible,” the letter stated.
In earlier correspondence to customers, SACI said it hoped the new trust company would honor existing annual trust fees already paid by the clients as they work to restore compliance.
The letter goes on to state that SACI plans to strongly challenge the FAA on this decision.
SACI notified its customers for some 800 affected aircraft, called the FAA’s notification letter a “surprise,” and disputed the FAA’s allegation of improper registration.
According to a news release from the FAA, in order to register an aircraft using a trust agreement, the company/trustee must either be a U.S. citizen or a resident alien. The FAA said it “found that SACI violated FAA regulations regarding U.S. citizenship requirements and must return registration certificates to the FAA within 21 days of notification.”
The FAA statement continued: “To operate legally, affected aircraft owners must reregister their aircraft either through another country’s aircraft registry or in the U.S. by submitting an Aircraft Registration Application to the FAA, along with evidence of ownership, and paying the registration fee ($5).”
The agency noted aircraft owners will then have temporary authority to operate within the U.S. until the applicant receives a Certificate of Aircraft Registration or until the FAA denies the application.