China Creates a New USM Pathway—but Only Approved Teardowns May Benefitby Editor - Daniel Brindley | October 1, 2026

China has formally recognized a new pathway for used aircraft parts recovered overseas, but it is not an open door for every teardown company or distributor. The opportunity centers on AFRA-accredited disassembly providers that can satisfy CAAC requirements and place verifiable records in the AFRA–CAAC Registry.

The Civil Aviation Administration of China’s recognition of the Aircraft Fleet Recycling Association’s Disassembly Accreditation has been described as opening new opportunities for used serviceable material in China.

That is true—but only with an important qualification.

The new framework does not automatically make every part with an FAA Form 8130-3 or EASA Form 1 acceptable for installation on a Chinese-registered aircraft. It establishes a controlled pathway through which qualified overseas companies can disassemble aircraft, document the recovered material and make that provenance available to Chinese airlines and MRO providers.

The companies that dismantle the aircraft—and the records created during that process—are therefore central to the program.

Why China Created the Pathway

The origins of the program go back several years.

In a 2023 Aviation Week interview, Jason Dickstein, president of Washington Aviation Group, which represents AFRA, said China’s aviation industry had previously encountered counterfeit and improperly documented aircraft parts.

CAAC wanted Chinese operators to have access to competitively priced USM without exposing the country’s aviation system to questionable material.

Its challenge was not simply determining whether a component had received an airworthiness release. CAAC also wanted greater control over how aircraft were dismantled, how parts were removed and identified, and how their connection to the source aircraft could be verified.

AFRA already operated a Best Management Practice accreditation program covering personnel training, tooling, documentation, tagging, part handling, safety and environmental requirements. This gave CAAC an existing system through which it could identify overseas disassembly companies for further investigation and approval.

AFRA and CAAC signed a memorandum of understanding covering technical cooperation in 2023. In September 2026, CAAC formally recognized AFRA Disassembly Accreditation and identified the AFRA–CAAC Registry as a compliant overseas registration platform.

Who Can Use the New Pathway?

This is not an unrestricted pathway for every aircraft-parts distributor, asset owner or teardown provider.

Dickstein explained that the original program was intended to help AFRA BMP-accredited part-out companies obtain the necessary CCAR Part 145 certification from CAAC. AFRA would identify acceptable companies, after which CAAC could investigate, inspect and approve them.

The current framework similarly refers to qualified overseas providers operating through controlled disassembly, documentation, registration and verifiable material provenance.

This means that being an AFRA member is not necessarily enough. The relevant qualification is AFRA Disassembly Accreditation, followed by the applicable CAAC approval.

AFRA offers accreditation for both disassembly and contracted disassembly, but facilities are independently audited. Companies cannot assume that any teardown performed by an outside contractor will qualify merely because the aircraft owner or parts distributor participates in the program.

The organization physically performing or controlling the disassembly must be included within the approved process.

The Seller and Teardown Provider May Be Different

The company selling the parts does not necessarily have to be the company that dismantled the aircraft.

An aircraft owner or distributor can commission an AFRA-accredited, CAAC-approved provider to perform the teardown and can subsequently own and market the recovered inventory. However, the parts must enter the AFRA–CAAC Registry through that approved disassembly process before they are offered to Chinese buyers.

The distributor cannot take material recovered through an ordinary teardown and make it eligible simply by uploading its existing paperwork to the blockchain. The registry records must connect the parts to a qualifying aircraft, an approved disassembly provider and a properly documented removal event.

This makes the choice of teardown partner commercially important. A distributor planning to sell recovered material into China may need to use an approved provider—even if another teardown company is less expensive or already part of its regular supply chain.

The commercial advantage therefore begins with the approved teardown. Distributors can benefit from selling the resulting inventory, but they cannot independently create its eligibility for the Chinese market.

An 8130-3 Is Only Part of the Record

The program also distinguishes between a dismantling record and an authorized release certificate.

A dismantling tag identifies the component and documents its removal from a particular aircraft or engine. It does not, by itself, approve the component for installation.

An FAA Form 8130-3, EASA Form 1 or CAAC AAC-038 may subsequently confirm that an appropriately approved organization has inspected, repaired or tested the component and found it eligible for return to service.

The AFRA–CAAC Registry is intended to connect these stages.

A release certificate may establish the component’s airworthiness status, while the registry provides additional evidence about its origin, removal and chain of custody. One does not necessarily replace the other.

For sellers, this means that otherwise marketable material could face difficulties in China if its original teardown provenance cannot be connected to an approved disassembly event.

Why the Blockchain Registry Matters

Block Aero Technologies operates the AFRA–CAAC Registry using its Aviation Blockchain Network.

The blockchain does not determine whether a component is airworthy, nor does it convert an unapproved teardown into an approved one. Its purpose is to preserve and connect the records created by participating organizations.

Aircraft, engines and dismantled parts can be registered with documentation linking each component to its source asset and removal event. Chinese buyers and regulators can then verify the recorded provenance through infrastructure connected with China’s civil aviation maintenance information system.

The importance is not the word “blockchain” by itself. It is the creation of a shared record that overseas sellers, Chinese MROs and CAAC can verify without relying entirely on documents being exchanged repeatedly between individual companies.

This could make qualifying material easier to evaluate and reduce delays caused by incomplete, inconsistent or difficult-to-verify records.

Will This Flood China With USM?

Not immediately.

The framework does not make all existing USM inventory eligible for the Chinese market, and it will not suddenly produce an unlimited supply of lower-cost parts.

Participation requires accreditation, inspection, approved procedures and the necessary records. Inventory recovered through teardown programs outside the framework may remain difficult to qualify, particularly when its original removal records are incomplete.

The initial commercial advantage is therefore likely to be concentrated among approved disassembly companies and distributors sourcing material from their projects.

Qualified parts could become more attractive to Chinese buyers because their provenance can be checked through a regulator-recognized system. Comparable components without that record may have fewer potential buyers or require additional work before they can be considered.

The result could be a two-tier market in which AFRA–CAAC-registered material carries greater commercial value for companies targeting China.

A Selective Opening, Not an Open Market

CAAC’s recognition is significant because it creates a clearer route for overseas disassembly material to reach Chinese airlines and MRO providers.

But the development should not be interpreted as China opening its doors to every foreign USM seller.

It is a selective, regulator-controlled pathway built around approved teardown providers, documented removal processes and verifiable provenance.

For aircraft owners and distributors, the most important question is no longer simply whether a part can receive an FAA or EASA release certificate. It is whether the original teardown was conducted and recorded in a way that preserves future access to regulated markets—including China.

Sources

China Recognizes AFRA Aircraft Disassembly Accreditation — Aviation Week, September 24, 2026

Fast 5: AFRA, CAAC Collaborate To Drive New USM Opportunities — Aviation Week, January 26, 2023

AFRA–CAAC Registry program overview — Block Aero Technologies AFRA Accreditation Program