FY2026 NDAA, Section 341 ("Maintenance inspection capabilities and requirements")

Proposed 2025-03-14 | Enacted 2025-12-18 | Official source

Summary

Requires the Secretary of Defense to ensure maintenance of aviation safety items and parts includes technical data requirements or diagnostic tools, leveraging AI and machine learning for predictive maintenance when necessary.

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Key facts

🏛️ This document has been enacted by the United States Congress. For authoritative text and metadata, visit the official source.

🎯 This document primarily applies to the government, rather than the private sector.

📜 This document's name is National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026, Section 341 ("Maintenance inspection capabilities and requirements"). AGORA also tracks this document under the name FY2026 NDAA, Section 341 ("Maintenance inspection capabilities and requirements"). It is part of FY2026 NDAA.

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Governance strategies (1)

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Full text

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SEC. 341. MAINTENANCE INSPECTION CAPABILITIES AND REQUIREMENTS. (a) Requirement.--Subject to the requirements of subsection (b), the Secretary of Defense shall ensure that when the Department of Defense conducts maintenance of aviation critical safety items and mission critical parts, such maintenance-- (1) includes the use of a technical data requirement or organic or commercially available diagnostic tool, if such a requirement or tool is required and available; and (2) is not conducted solely through visual inspection unless-- (A) no such requirement or tool is available; or (B) only a visual inspection is required under a technical data requirement. (b) Sustainment.--The Secretary shall ensure that the acquisition of appropriate technical data requirements and diagnostic tools for the conduct of maintenance of aviation critical safety items and mission critical parts are planned as part of the sustainment of the systems containing such items and parts.

(c) Definitions.--In this section: (1) The term ``aviation critical safety item'' means any part, assembly, installation equipment, launch equipment, recovery equipment, or support equipment for an aircraft or aviation weapon system the failure, malfunction, or absence of which could cause-- (A) a catastrophic or critical failure resulting in the loss of or serious damage to the aircraft or weapon system; (B) an unacceptable risk of personal injury or loss of life; or (C) an uncommanded engine shutdown that jeopardizes safety. (2) The term ``corrosion'' means the deterioration of a material or its properties, including non-metallic materials, due to a reaction of that material with the chemical environment. (3) The term ``diagnostic tool'' means a non-destructive inspection tool capable of-- (A) detecting corrosion, cracks, component damage, adhesion failure, and standard wear and tear; and (B) leveraging artificial intelligence and machine learning to build a predictive maintenance database when necessary to improve maintainability.