Duffy Presses for Faster Aircraft Certification, Citing Chinese Competition

US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said on 30 September that the aircraft certification process is holding back new designs from major manufacturers and needs to move faster. Speaking in Washington, he framed the issue as one of competitiveness with China as much as of regulatory efficiency.

“We need to make sure we have safe aviation, but can we move faster?” Duffy said. He argued that approval periods that can stretch to a decade discourage investors from financing new programmes and put American manufacturers at a disadvantage against Chinese competitors.

What the FAA has already proposed

Duffy’s remarks build on a proposal the FAA published in June 2026 to update the airworthiness standards for transport-category aircraft under 14 CFR Part 25. The rulemaking would move away from prescriptive design requirements in favour of performance-based standards. It would also fold into the regulations the exemptions, special conditions and equivalent safety findings that are routinely granted, so that familiar design features no longer need a separate approval each time.

The proposal covers areas including cabin interiors, emergency exits, fuel tank flammability, windshield visibility, decompression standards, and protections for power levers and thrust reversers. The FAA says it is also intended to accommodate advanced materials, digital flight systems, hybrid propulsion and new aircraft configurations.

Alignment with Europe

A second aim is to bring US requirements closer to those of the European Union Aviation Safety Agency, making it easier for each regulator to accept the other’s approvals. The FAA says the changes would maintain existing safety standards. The affected manufacturers include Boeing, Airbus, Embraer and Bombardier.

The rulemaking follows the FAA-EASA International Aviation Safety Conference in June, where the two agencies agreed to widen cooperation on certification approvals and emerging technologies. Their next meeting is planned for Cologne in June 2027.

The MAX 10 backdrop

Duffy’s comments came on the same day the FAA’s decision to hold back Boeing’s 737 MAX 10 became a talking point, after Administrator Bryan Bedford said on 28 September that approval would wait for a software fix. Duffy said he saw no current safety concern from the go-around issue that triggered the delay.

The juxtaposition illustrates the tension regulators face. Certification reforms introduced after the 737 MAX accidents increased FAA oversight rather than reducing it, and Boeing’s 737 MAX 10 and 777-9 are both years behind their original schedules.

For now, the Part 25 proposal remains a proposal. Rulemaking requires public comment and a final rule before any change takes effect, and the department has not set a date for that.

The announcement also arrives as US and European regulators try to avoid duplicated work. The FAA and EASA agreed in June to track progress through regular executive leadership reviews, so any change to Part 25 will be watched in Cologne as closely as in Washington. Manufacturers that sell in both markets stand to benefit most if the two rulebooks converge, because one set of test evidence could then satisfy both authorities.