Industry Leaders Pressing on Certification, Validation Improvements | Aviation International News

Regulations and Government

Industry Leaders Press on Cert, Validation Improvements

White House threats over Gulfstream certificates highlight long-standing issue, leaders say

generic aircraft — © Jetcraft, Aero Capital

By Kerry Lynch • Editor, AIN monthly magazine

February 20, 2026

Industry leaders are encouraged by momentum to improve the certification process at the FAA, but continue to press for long-needed changes to bureaucracies that they believe slow the introduction of safety-enhancing technologies. At the same time, they see a need to rebalance validation efforts that may have gotten out of sync internationally—an issue they believe was highlighted by the recent White House statement that it would pull the certifications from Bombardier if Canada did not move on long-pending Gulfstream approvals.

Speaking during the General Aviation Manufacturers Association’s (GAMA) annual State of the Industry press conference on Wednesday, president and CEO James Viola pointed to a Mitre study that was mandated by Congress on the future state of the type certification process for the FAA. The study identified paths to leverage safety oversight and stakeholder accountability, along with the use of tools such as digitization and modeling techniques. That study also pushed for more of a risk-based approach than the one currently employed by the FAA.

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