By Rajesh Kumar Singh
CHICAGO (Reuters) -Jet engine maker CFM International said on Tuesday more than half of the 145 engines suspected, thus far, of containing falsely documented parts from a UK distributor have been removed from service.
CFM, owned by GE and France's Safran (EPA:SAF), said it has completed an "exhaustive" review of the documentation provided by AOG Technics and shared the results with the relevant authorities.
"We are closely working with CFM56 operators affected by unauthorized parts from AOG Technics while supporting the investigation to keep unapproved parts out of the global supply chain," a spokesperson said.
The company said after an analysis of the documentation provided by AOG Technics it has identified 180 falsified documents, covering 124 part numbers.
CFM has shared all of the records AOG Technics produced with regulators in the U.S., the UK and Europe, it said.
While the count of affected engines has risen from 126 in the past three weeks, they still accounted for less than 1% of the 22,600 CFM56 engines in service globally.
The CFM56 is the most-sold jet engine in history and was developed by a transatlantic venture that turns 50 next year. The engines are repaired through third-party networks or at maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) facilities operated by CFM itself.
The company said it is coordinating with operators and MRO shops to help assess the authenticity of documentation for parts they acquired directly or indirectly from AOG Technics.
CFM and its parent companies are also working on a number of internal measures including a better evaluation of suppliers, with an aim to reduce the risk of similarly fraudulent conduct in the future, it added.
AOG Technics could not be reached for comment.
In a court hearing last month, lawyers representing AOG and director Jose Zamora Yrala said they were "cooperating fully" with the investigation without commenting on CFM's claims.