Any aircraft operator who has ever been offered spare parts from an unknown supplier at an unusually competitive price can now check to see whether the components are stolen.
Inventory Locator Service (ILS) is a month into running a new free service on the Internet that enables operators to avoid inadvertently handling stolen goods.
Memphis-based ILS, an originator of online systems that bring together aviation suppliers and potential customers in what has been dubbed the ‘electronic marketplace', receives notification of parts thefts and put them onto its Stolen Parts database, which is free to anyone who taps into the Internet.
While president Bruce Langsen stresses that stolen parts are a much smaller problem than the thorny question of unapproved parts currently exercising many minds in the aviation business, he believes the service is proving of use.
"We're getting about 30 searches a day on that database. You can search using a part number or a serial number and if one comes back as a ‘hit', then it tells the individual what agency to contact for more information."
ILS, which has 30 million items in its various inventory lists, receives 22,000 calls every working day, says Langsen.
From 1 October, it will be putting its Parts Manufacturing Approval (PMA) database online. All ILS's databases can be found at http:\\www.go-ils.com. The company is at Hall 1/D7.
Source: Flight Daily News
