ABOVE: A large number of aircraft are FAA-registered under SACI
Southern Aircraft Consultancy Inc (SACI) has reached an agreement with Valiair that could potentially allow some of its N-registered aircraft based in the UK to return to service in the future. The announcement, reported by AOPA UK on its website, does not however mean that the affected aircraft can immediately return to flying.
About 800 aircraft based in the UK are FAA-registered through Southern Aircraft Consultancy, and those aircraft were affected by a notification issued by the US regulator on 13 January that stated ‘the company [SACI] was in violation of U.S. citizenship requirements when it submitted the registration applications’. In the note, the FAA added ‘The invalid Certificates of Aircraft Registration will result in the immediate grounding of all aircraft registered to SACI’.
The agreement between SACI and Valiair (a US-based provider of aircraft trusts) might offer a solution for the affected aircraft, so that they can be allowed to fly again at some point in the future. However, at the moment, AOPA UK says: ‘If your aircraft is N-registered, and registered via Southern Aircraft Consultancy Inc as trustee, you should assume that the aircraft cannot legally fly until the registration issue is resolved’.
IMAGE: SCREENSHOT FROM FAA WEBSITE
