The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has proposed a change to inspection authorization (IA) for aircraft mechanics that would replace the IA with an inspection rating on a mechanic’s certificate.

The FAA’s new notice of proposed rulemaking on IA renewal says, “FAA proposes to require certificated mechanics with inspection ratings to complete rolling recent experience activities, maintained independently, to exercise the privileges of their rating, rather than the current requirements of presenting evidence of renewal activities each March of every odd-numbered year.”

This change intends to benefit mechanics by:

• Aligning mechanic privileges
• Streamline the process for maintaining inspection credentials
• Reducing on-demand FAA tasks
• Creating more time for missions focused on safety

As these changes would reduce the overall need for resources and paperwork to comply with existing regulations, they would be deregulatory.

The FAA encourages interested parties to submit comments on the proposed rule change by August 31, 2026.