A Florida aircraft mechanic indicted in February by a federal grand jury for false certification of commercial aircraft parts pleaded guilty to the allegations on August 17 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, according to the Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General (DOT-OIG). The indictment alleged that David Alexander Barcena certified commercial aircraft parts as ready for service and installation using falsified FAA airworthiness approval tags during a period between December 2016 and May 2017.

Those parts included anti-icing valves, a hydraulic reservoir assembly, and landing gear actuator. Barcena was alleged in the indictment to have sourced the tags from an FAA Part 145 repair station that went out of business and where he had worked as a chief inspector.

The DOT-OIG led the investigation with assistance from the FAA Flight Standards Division Office in Miramar, Florida.