Approved Aircraft Inspection Program (AAIP) Requirements

The requirements for an Approved Aircraft Inspection Program (AAIP) come down to five things: your aircraft has to be eligible, you have to follow the correct regulatory pathway for your operation, you have to submit a written program that covers inspection tasks, intervals, and discrepancy handling, the people performing the work must hold the right certificates, and the FAA has to formally approve the program before you use it.¹ An AAIP replaces the standard annual and 100-hour inspection cycle with a schedule built around how the aircraft is actually used, breaking inspections into phases timed to flight hours, calendar time, and cycles.

Which Aircraft Are Eligible

Under 14 CFR 91.409(e), the following aircraft cannot rely on standard annual or 100-hour inspections and must operate under one of the structured programs listed in paragraph (f), of which an AAIP is one option:

Large airplanes with a maximum certificated takeoff weight above 12,500 pounds, when not already covered by Part 125.²
Turbojet multiengine airplanes, regardless of weight.
Turbopropeller-powered multiengine airplanes, regardless of weight.
Turbine-powered rotorcraft, though rotorcraft owners may elect to remain on the annual, 100-hour, or progressive inspection schedules instead.³

If your aircraft falls into one of the first three categories, an inspection program is not optional. An AAIP is one of the paths available to satisfy that obligation.

Which Regulatory Pathway Applies

The requirements overlap, but the approval authority and paperwork differ depending on your operation.

Part 135 Certificate Holders

Commercial on-demand charter, air taxi, and similar Part 135 operators apply for an AAIP through an amendment to their Operations Specifications. The FAA can also require a Part 135 operator to adopt one when it finds standard Part 91 inspections inadequate.⁴ The certificate holder must have exclusive use of at least one aircraft of the make and model covered. Authorization is issued through Operations Specification D073, and the program must be incorporated into the operator’s required manual.⁵ Where the FAA initiates the requirement, the operator has 30 days from the OpSpecs amendment to submit the program unless another period is specified.

Part 91 Owner-Developed Programs

A registered owner or operator of an eligible aircraft that does not hold a Part 135 certificate can develop its own program and submit it to the responsible Flight Standards office under 14 CFR 91.409(f)(4) and (g). Corporate flight departments running turbine aircraft commonly use this route. The written program must include detailed inspection instructions for the specific make and model, a schedule expressed in flight hours, calendar time, system cycles, or a combination, and the name of the person responsible for scheduling.³

Fractional Ownership Under Part 91 Subpart K

Program managers running fractional fleets must establish an inspection program for each make and model. It can be derived from manufacturer recommendations, an existing Part 135 AAIP, a Part 121 continuous airworthiness program, or other approved sources. Approval runs through the Flight Standards office that issued the manager’s management specifications.⁶ Content requirements mirror those for a Part 135 AAIP.

What the Written Program Must Contain

Whichever pathway you follow, the document has to cover three areas. Missing any one of them will get the submission rejected.

Task-level inspection instructions and procedures identifying the specific parts and areas of the airframe, engines, propellers, rotors, and appliances (including emergency equipment) to be inspected.⁴
A schedule assigning intervals to each task, stated in flight hours, calendar time, system cycles, or a combination. Vague intervals will not be approved; the FAA approves specific numbers, and later changes require a formal revision.
Discrepancy recording procedures covering how findings are documented, corrected or deferred, and how those records are kept.

Most operators build the schedule from the manufacturer’s maintenance manual, which supplies the baseline intervals and wear tolerances the FAA expects to see reflected. Operators may propose adjustments based on their own service experience, operating environment, or fleet configuration, but any deviation from manufacturer recommendations should be supported.¹ The program must also spell out how future revisions will be made and how FAA approval will be obtained before any change is put into effect.

Personnel and Facility Requirements

Who does the work matters as much as the written plan, and the rules for inspections are stricter than the rules for other maintenance.

Under 14 CFR 43.3, a certificated mechanic holding an Airframe and Powerplant rating can perform maintenance, preventive maintenance, and alterations. A non-certificated person can perform maintenance under the direct supervision of a certificated mechanic, but that exception does not extend to inspections required by Part 91 or Part 125.⁷ The technician turning a wrench on a routine repair may work under supervision; the person signing off an AAIP inspection task needs their own certificate authority. Many operators layer on type-specific training beyond the base A&P certificate, particularly for turbine powerplants or advanced avionics.

Inspections themselves are often performed at Part 145 certificated repair stations, which the FAA evaluates for equipment, technical data, housing, and personnel before issuing a certificate, and which must maintain a quality control system covering every article they release.⁸ A Part 145 station is not strictly required for every AAIP task, but deep structural inspections and engine teardowns typically demand the calibrated tooling and controlled environment such a facility provides.

Every AAIP must also designate a person responsible for scheduling and tracking the program. That person makes sure inspections happen on time, that deferred discrepancies do not slip, and that records stay current. They are the FAA’s primary contact during surveillance.

How Approval Works

An existing Part 135 operator applies for an amendment to its Operations Specifications, submitting the written program with the application. The FAA reviews the proposed schedule to confirm it covers every part and area of the aircraft, sets reasonable intervals, and includes proper discrepancy-tracking procedures.⁴

Part 91 owner-developed programs go directly to the responsible Flight Standards office. The regulation does not fix a review timeline, and processing depends on fleet complexity and office workload. Expect requests for additional data supporting proposed intervals, especially where you are moving away from manufacturer recommendations.

When the program is approved, the FAA issues or amends Operations Specification D073 for Part 135 and Part 125 operators, or the equivalent management specification for fractional programs. The approved program is identified through an FAA approval stamp and signature on its control pages.¹ That authorization must be kept at the operator’s principal place of business and made available for FAA inspection.

Keeping the Program Current

An AAIP is a living document. Revisions become necessary when service experience, test results, fleet modifications, or changes in operating environment show that the schedule or procedures need updating. Either the operator or the FAA can start the process.¹

Any proposed change must first be evaluated by the operator to confirm the program still covers all installed avionics, equipment, and aircraft systems in the current configuration. Revisions based on test data or disassembly analysis should be coordinated with the FAA so the agency can observe the underlying conditions. The critical rule: no revision to inspection time intervals takes effect until the FAA approves it.

Procedures, meaning the how rather than the when, have slightly more room. If your program references manufacturer instructions in an “as revised” state, updated manufacturer procedures can be adopted without a separate FAA approval cycle. That shortcut never applies to interval changes. Operators who reference manufacturer documents in a frozen configuration must submit every procedural change through the normal revision process, complete with FAA review and approval stamp, before implementation.

Switching Between Programs

You are not locked into a single inspection program. An operator can transition among the programs listed in 14 CFR 91.409(f), for instance moving from a manufacturer’s continuous airworthiness program to an AAIP or the reverse. The catch is that all time in service, calendar time, and cycles accumulated under the previous program carry forward. Switching does not reset the clock. If a component had 200 hours remaining before inspection under the old program, those 200 hours carry into the new schedule.³

What Noncompliance Costs

Operating outside the approved program is not treated as a paperwork issue. Civil penalties under 49 U.S.C. 46301 depend on the violator. A company or other entity faces up to $75,000 per violation. An individual or small business concern faces up to $1,875 per violation in most cases, rising to $17,062 under the heightened safety tier.⁹ The FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024 raised the caps for administratively imposed penalties to $1,200,000 for entities and $100,000 for individuals.¹⁰ In severe cases of negligent or repeated noncompliance, the FAA can suspend or revoke the operator’s certificate or ground individual aircraft until compliance is restored.

Records carry their own exposure. Under 14 CFR Part 3, Subpart D, consolidated effective November 3, 2025, any person who makes a fraudulent or intentionally false statement, or knowingly omits a material fact in a document used to show regulatory compliance, faces certificate denial, suspension, modification, or revocation, plus civil penalties.¹¹ Even an unintentional incorrect statement that turns out to be material can serve as grounds for certificate action. Federal criminal statutes under 18 U.S.C. 1001 also apply to falsified aviation records.

If an inspection was not completed, do not sign it off as completed. If an interval was exceeded, document it and address it. A missed inspection is a manageable problem; a covered-up one usually is not.

1
Federal Aviation Administration. Advisory Circular 135-10C – Approved Aircraft Inspection Program
2
eCFR. 14 CFR 1.1 – General Definitions
3
eCFR. 14 CFR 91.409 – Inspections
4
eCFR. 14 CFR 135.419 – Approved Aircraft Inspection Program
5
Federal Aviation Administration. Notice N 8900.467 – OpSpec/MSpec/LOA D073, Approved Inspection Program
6
eCFR. 14 CFR 91.1109 – Aircraft Maintenance: Inspection Program
7
eCFR. 14 CFR 43.3 – Persons Authorized to Perform Maintenance, Preventive Maintenance, Rebuilding, and Alterations
8
eCFR. 14 CFR Part 145 – Repair Stations
9
eCFR. 14 CFR 13.301 – Inflation Adjustments of Civil Monetary Penalties
10
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 49 USC 46301 – Civil Penalties
11
Federal Register. Falsification, Reproduction, Alteration, Omission, or Incorrect Statements