The United States Federal Aviation Administration - FAA has invalidated all registration certificates issued to United Kingdom-based Southern Aircraft Consultancy Inc Trustee (SACI), citing non-compliance with United States citizenship requirements at the time of registration. The decision has led to the immediate grounding of more than 600 aircraft.
According to the FAA, SACI registered aircraft on behalf of both United States citizens and foreign nationals using trust arrangements, despite lacking the regulatory standing required to act as a trustee. FAA regulations require any entity registering aircraft through a trust to qualify as either a United States citizen or a resident alien.
The regulator has formally notified SACI that all affected registration certificates are invalid and has ordered the company to surrender the documents within 21 days. As a result, all aircraft registered to SACI are grounded with immediate effect. FAA records confirm that 649 aircraft are listed under the trust, with 641 flagged as invalid. Nine of the affected aircraft are business jets:
- Citation N324JC (msn 500-0324), 49.1 years old, stored at Odense since March 2023;
- Citation Ultra N778B (msn 560-0523), 26.5 years old, previously based at Milan Linate and parked at Mumbai International since January 13;
- Phenom 100 N580JS (msn 50000079), 16.1 years old, based at Sofia;
- Vision Jet G2 N12EB (msn 185), 5.9 years old, based at Villefranche;
- Vision Jet G2 N869DK (msn 264), 4.4 years old, based at Antwerp;
- Vision Jet G2+ N77LD (msn 265), 4.7 years old, based at Zurich;
- Vision Jet G2+ N222FC (msn 384), 3.3 years old, based at Hamburg;
- BAe-125-800A N606 (msn 258068), 38.4 years old, stored at Panamá City Tocumen International;
- Hawker 800XP N981DB (msn 258302), 29.7 years old, previously based at Dubai World Central and stored at Beirut since September 2023.
None of the affected business jets are operated under a Part 135 certificate. The remaining aircraft registered to SACI comprise fixed-wing piston aircraft, turboprops, and rotary-wing types.
To resume lawful operations, owners must reregister aircraft either with another national authority or through a new FAA registration application. Upon submission, the FAA grants temporary authority for domestic operations within the United States while the application remains under review, unless the registration is denied.
Owners intending to operate internationally may submit a Declaration of International Operations (DIO) with the application to request expedited processing, the FAA said.
