Cost of Aircraft Maintenance and Repair
across the UK

# Aircraft Maintenance and Repair Trade Body Accreditation

Aircraft maintenance and repair in the UK is primarily regulated by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), which oversees Part-145 approvals—the standard that certifies maintenance organisations to carry out scheduled and unscheduled maintenance on aircraft. Providers holding Part-145 certification have met stringent requirements around technical competence, facilities, documentation, and quality management. Additionally, individual engineers must hold Part-66 certifications issued by the CAA, demonstrating they have the required knowledge and experience for their category of work. Some providers may also hold international accreditations such as EASA (European Union Aviation Safety Agency) approval, which carries particular weight if the aircraft operate across European airspace. Understanding these designations is important because they directly relate to whether a maintenance organisation is legally permitted to sign off certain maintenance tasks and whether the work meets the standards required for airworthiness certification.

To verify a provider's credentials, you should ask for their CAA approval certificate or Part-145 certificate number and check it directly against the CAA's register of approved maintenance organisations on their website. You can also request to see the maintenance release documentation (form CAA 2709 or equivalent) that will be issued after work is completed, which proves the organisation is authorised to certify that the aircraft is airworthy. It is equally important to confirm that the engineers working on your aircraft hold current Part-66 certifications appropriate to the work being performed. Checking these credentials matters because non-compliant maintenance voids insurance, creates legal liability, and risks the airworthiness of the aircraft. If an aircraft suffers an incident and it emerges that maintenance was performed by an unapproved organisation, the owner or operator faces serious regulatory consequences.

Accredited maintenance providers typically charge between 15 and 30 per cent more than unaccredited