REGULATORY REQUIREMENT OF 

1. Regulation 3 of Technical Airworthiness Management Manual (TAMM) stipulates that the design or engineering activities of state-registered aircraft and its aeronautical product be performed by an organization that has been certified by the Technical Airworthiness Regulator (TAR) as an Authorised Engineering Organization (AEO). In this context, the AEO shall include all service and commercial organizations engaged, or seeking to engage, in the design, production or engineering activities of Malaysian state-registered aircraft and its aeronautical products.

2. Any commercial organization can submit the application for AEO certification to DGTA provided the following pre-requisites are met:

a. Existence of a design/engineering services contract between the applying organization and the Government of Malaysia.

b. In the absence of the contract, a sponsorship letter from respective State Aircraft Operators (SAO). The sponsorship letter shall define clearly the scope & level of design or engineering activities to be certified.

c. Submission of a draft Engineering Management Plan (EMP) that conforms to the requirement stipulated in the TAMM. The EMP must define clearly the scope and level of design or engineering activities that have been authorized by the SAO.

3. For service organizations applying to be an AEO, the above pre-requisites are also required to be met except for the design/engineering contract.

4. For commercial organizations which have already been certified as an AEO by another approved national airworthiness authority, a copy of the approval certificate is required in addition to the pre-requisites mentioned in paragraph 2 above.

5. Once the pre-requisites are met, DGTA will carry out a desktop audit (or adequacy audit) based on the content of the draft EMP. The desktop audit is only completed after the auditors are fully satisfied that the EMP fully complies with the TAMM requirement.

6. On-site compliance audit will be carried out by DGTA auditors when the date of audit has been agreed by both parties. Based on non-conformance findings by the auditors, the auditee is required to take corrective actions within a stipulated timeframe depending on the category of non-conformances. A copy of the audit report will be given to the auditee.

7. A letter of Engineering Authority (LEA) and AEO certificate will be awarded once DGTA is fully satisfied that the applicant has completed the corrective actions. The AEO certificate will be valid for three years effective from the date of approval.

8. Surveillance audits are carried out on a yearly basis or as and when required by the SAO. The AEO approval can be revoked at any time if the approval holder fails to comply with the TAMM requirement.