A DER repair is only as good as the paper that proves it. The engineering can be sound and the workmanship exact, but the person signing a repaired component into a fleet sees documents first — and those documents have to answer one question cleanly: is this the right part, repaired to approved data, in a known condition, from an accountable source? Unlike a new part, a DER-repaired article carries a small stack of records, each doing a different job. This article walks through what each one certifies and how they fit together so a receiving organization can accept the part on the first pass.

The Two Jobs: Approving the Data vs. Releasing the Part

The most common confusion around DER repair documentation is treating it as a single approval. It is really two separate acts, recorded on two different forms.

The first is approval of the data — the engineering that says this repair, applied to this component, restores it to an approved condition. That finding of compliance is documented on FAA Form 8110-3. The second is the return to service of the physical part after the work is actually performed — recorded in maintenance records under 14 CFR Part 43, and often accompanied by an FAA Form 8130-3. One approves the method; the other releases the hardware. A complete package shows both, and shows them tied to the same part.

If you want the upstream view of how that approval is generated in the first place, see how a DER repair gets approved. This article picks up where that one leaves off: the records that leave the shop with the part.

FAA Form 8110-3: The Compliance Finding

FAA Form 8110-3 is the Statement of Compliance with Airworthiness Standards. It is the means by which a Designated Engineering Representative approves, or recommends approval of, engineering and technical data. For a major repair, it is one route to the approved data that Part 43 requires.

It is important to be precise about what the 8110-3 does and does not do. It documents a finding that the repair data complies with the applicable airworthiness standards. It does not authorize production, it does not grant operational approval, and it is not a work order or a release of the physical article. A DER repair approval can take one of a few forms on the 8110-3: a one-time approval for a single repair, a serial-number-specific approval, or a multiple-use approval supporting a Repair Specification for a recurring major repair. Reading which form you are holding tells you how broadly the underlying data applies — a point that matters when you are matching records to the part in your hand.

The Part 43 Records: Where the Physical Repair Lives

The 8110-3 approves the data; the actual work is performed and returned to service under 14 CFR Part 43 by an appropriately rated repair station or mechanic. This is where the physical repair is documented, and it is governed by 14 CFR 43.9, which sets out the content and disposition of maintenance records for maintenance, preventive maintenance, rebuilding, and alteration.

A Part 43 maintenance record for the repair generally captures a description of the work performed (or a reference to data acceptable to the Administrator), the date of completion, and the signature and certificate information of the person approving return to service. For a DER repair, the record ties the work to the approved data — the 8110-3-approved repair — so the two documents read as one story rather than two loose pieces. The airworthiness standard the work has to meet is that the item is restored to a condition at least equal to its original or properly altered condition; FAA-approved life limits set by the type or production certificate holder remain unchanged, and life-limited parts are handled with corresponding care.

FAA Form 8130-3: The Tag That Can Travel With the Part

After the repair is performed and returned to service, an FAA Form 8130-3 — the Authorized Release Certificate, Airworthiness Approval Tag — can accompany the released article. For a maintained or repaired part, the relevant release is the approval-for-return-to-service block, which documents that the work was completed under 14 CFR 43.9 on the date recorded.

The 8130-3 is the artifact a receiving inspector recognizes on sight, and its block mechanics are worth understanding in their own right — we cover them in detail in FAA Form 8130-3 and PMA traceability. The same form and the same blocks apply here; the difference is context. For a new PMA part, the tag carries a new-part airworthiness approval. For a DER repair, it carries a return-to-service approval, and the remarks field typically references the approved repair data that authorizes the work. A receiving organization reads that reference to connect the tag back to the 8110-3.

Traceability: Making the Records Match the Part

None of these documents stands alone. What lets a receiving organization accept a DER-repaired part is that the records agree with each other and with the hardware. The part and serial number on the component match the part and serial on the 8130-3; the return-to-service record identifies the repair performed; and that repair references the approved data — the 8110-3 finding — that authorizes it. For a serial-specific 8110-3, the serial on the approval has to be the serial on the part. For a recurring repair performed under a Repair Specification, the records reference that Repair Specification instead of a single-use approval, and the standardized instructions it contains define the repair that was applied.

That matching discipline is what defeats the “suspected unapproved part” problem before it starts. A repaired component whose paper trail is complete and self-consistent is a component whose pedigree can be checked. One with a gap — a tag that does not reference the data, a serial that does not match, a Repair Specification cited but not identifiable — is a part that stops at receiving until the gap is closed.

How a Receiving Organization Accepts a DER Repair

Put together, acceptance is a short, ordered check. The receiver confirms the 8130-3 is present and identifies the part and serial in hand. They confirm the return-to-service record under Part 43 identifies the repair and the person who released it. They confirm the repair references approved data — a DER 8110-3, whether one-time, serial-specific, or a Repair Specification — and that the reference is the right one for this part and serial. When those agree, the part is accepted on the documentation, not on a phone call. For cross-border acceptance, FAA-approved repair design data is accepted by EASA subject to the conditions of the US–EU bilateral’s Technical Implementation Procedures; the records still have to match, and critical or complex cases can require additional coordination, as covered in DER repairs and EASA acceptance.

How AviaFix Approaches DER Repair Documentation

AviaFix builds the documentation package to clear receiving on the first pass, not to be reconstructed afterward. Each DER-repaired article ships with the return-to-service records under Part 43, the 8130-3 where it applies, and a clear reference from the release back to the approved repair data — the 8110-3 finding or the Repair Specification that authorizes it — with part and serial numbers that match the hardware. Where a repair cannot be substantiated against approved data, we decline it rather than release a part whose paperwork will not stand up to an audit. That is the same discipline described across our repairs overview: the value of a qualified second source comes from records that are receipt-ready, not from cutting the trail short.

Frequently Asked Questions

What documents should come with a DER-repaired part? Expect the return-to-service maintenance record under 14 CFR Part 43 for the physical repair, an FAA Form 8130-3 where it accompanies the released article, and a reference from that release back to the approved repair data — the FAA Form 8110-3 finding of compliance, or the Repair Specification for a recurring repair. The part and serial numbers on the paperwork should match the component.

What is the difference between an 8110-3 and an 8130-3 on a DER repair? The 8110-3 is a Designated Engineering Representative’s finding that the repair data complies with airworthiness standards — it approves the method, not the hardware. The 8130-3 is an airworthiness approval tag that can accompany the physical part after it is returned to service under Part 43. One approves the engineering; the other releases the part.

Does an 8110-3 authorize the physical repair or return the part to service? No. The 8110-3 documents a finding of compliance for the repair data. The physical repair is performed and returned to service under 14 CFR Part 43 by an appropriately rated repair station or mechanic, and that return to service is recorded under 14 CFR 43.9 — separately from the data approval.

How does a receiving organization accept a DER-repaired part on the documentation? By matching the records to the hardware: the 8130-3 identifies the part and serial in hand, the Part 43 record identifies the repair and who released it, and the repair references approved data — an 8110-3 or a Repair Specification — that is the correct one for that part and serial. When the trail is complete and self-consistent, the part is accepted on paper.

Sources & Further Reading

Related reading: How a DER Repair Gets Approved · FAA Form 8130-3 & PMA Traceability · Repairs overview

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