FAA Issuing New Registrations for Grounded SACI Aircraft

Less than two weeks after the FAA grounded some 800 aircraft registered under the Southern Aircraft Consultancy Inc. (SACI) trust, the agency has begun issuing temporary certificates of registration (CORs) to enable them to resume operations, according to Gilchrist Aviation Law.

On January 13, the FAA announced the grounding of about 800 aircraft—including 52 turboprops, business jets, and turbine helicopters—saying that all of SACI’s aircraft registration certificates were invalid because the UK-based company violated U.S. citizenship requirements when it submitted the registration applications.  

Casper, Wyoming-based Valiair immediately stepped in to acquire SACI and has been working with the FAA and Gilchrist Aviation Law on new certificates. The law firm reported that the FAA began processing “fly-wires,” or temporary CORs, on January 23 for SACI aircraft where beneficial owners have cooperated by returning their invalid CORs and for which new registration documentation has been submitted. Clay Ferguson, an associate with Gilchrist Aviation Law, estimated that the reregistrations could be completed within a few weeks.

“The FAA has responded promptly to these submissions, allowing affected aircraft to return to service without unnecessary delay,” the law firm said. “The reregistration process is now moving quickly and efficiently. Gilchrist Aviation Law, working closely with SACI, Valiair, and the FAA, has been able to reregister SACI aircraft within a matter of days of receipt of the old COR.”