AOG Technics Founder Jailed for Global Fake Aircraft Parts Fraud

Jose Alejandro Zamora Yrala, the founder of London-based parts supplier AOG Technics, has been sentenced to four years and eight months in prison for orchestrating a widespread fraud that introduced tens of thousands of unapproved aircraft engine components into the global aviation supply chain. The sentencing at London’s Southwark Crown Court concludes a case that triggered worldwide safety alerts and cost the industry an estimated £39.3 million in damages.

According to the UK's Serious Fraud Office (SFO), which led the prosecution, Zamora Yrala's company sold over 60,000 jet-engine components accompanied by fabricated paperwork between January 2019 and July 2023. The scheme relied on forging Authorised Release Certificates (ARCs), the critical documentation that attests to a part's airworthiness and traceability. This deception generated over £7.7 million in revenue for AOG Technics, with the SFO stating that 90% of this income was derived from fraudulent activity. The parts themselves were sold for approximately £6.9 million.

During sentencing, Judge Simon Picken described the actions as a "more or less complete undermining of a regulatory framework designed to safeguard the millions of people who fly every day," calling Zamora Yrala’s conduct "reckless at best and utterly inexcusable."

The Scale of the Deception

The fraud primarily targeted components for the CFM International 56 (CFM56) engine, the best-selling jet engine in the world. This engine powers the majority of Boeing 737 and Airbus A320 family aircraft, the workhorses of global short- and medium-haul fleets. By focusing on such a common engine type, the unapproved parts were able to infiltrate the supply chains of numerous major airlines and maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) facilities worldwide.

The SFO investigation revealed a sophisticated operation where Zamora Yrala, 38, used a Spanish graphic designer to doctor PDF certificates from his home office. These forged documents falsely claimed the parts were new and certified by original equipment manufacturers. The resulting financial impact was significant, with American Airlines reportedly suffering the largest single loss at over £21 million, despite not purchasing parts directly from AOG Technics. This highlights the cascading effect of Suspected Unapproved Parts (SUPs) as they move through third-party distributors and maintenance providers.

Regulatory Response and Industry Impact

The scheme began to unravel when a diligent engineer at TAP Air Portugal (TAP) questioned the paperwork for a part received. The airline's maintenance division contacted the original manufacturer, Safran, which confirmed the accompanying certificate was a forgery. This single query triggered a global investigation.

In response, aviation safety regulators issued urgent alerts. On August 4, 2023, the UK's Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) published Safety Notice SN-2023/004, formally warning all UK-based aircraft owners and operators about the suspected unapproved parts. This was quickly followed by similar directives from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the United States' Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). These alerts compelled airlines globally to conduct extensive and costly fleet-wide inspections to identify and remove any components supplied by AOG Technics, leading to aircraft groundings and operational disruptions.

Emma Luxton, Director of Operations at the SFO, commented on the severity of the case in an official SFO announcement. "Zamora's operation risked public safety on a global scale in a way that defies belief," she stated, underscoring the gravity of introducing untraceable and potentially substandard parts into critical engine systems.

A System Under Scrutiny

The AOG Technics scandal has exposed vulnerabilities in the aviation industry's parts traceability systems, which have long relied on paper-based or easily doctored PDF certificates. The case serves as a stark reminder that counterfeit and unapproved parts remain a persistent threat to the integrity of the aviation supply chain.

In the wake of the investigation, leading industry stakeholders, including airlines, MROs, and manufacturers, formed the Aviation Supply Chain Integrity Coalition. The group's primary objective is to develop more robust methods for validating parts and their documentation. A key focus is the acceleration of secure digital records and digitally signed ARCs, which would be significantly more difficult to forge than their paper or PDF counterparts. This industry-led initiative aims to restore confidence and build a more resilient system to prevent a similar large-scale fraud from occurring in the future.

Why This Matters

This case transcends a single criminal act, highlighting a systemic vulnerability in the global aviation supply chain's reliance on trust and legacy documentation. It forces the industry to confront the urgent need for modernization, particularly through the adoption of secure digital traceability for aircraft parts. The widespread impact demonstrates that a single fraudulent actor can compromise safety and impose massive financial and operational burdens on airlines worldwide, accelerating the push for a more technologically resilient and transparent parts marketplace.

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