Configuration & equipment
Equipment-list review
An equipment-list review confirms that the recorded equipment list matches the aircraft's installed configuration and the modifications that put each item there. It is used before a purchase, a lease return, or after a cabin or avionics change. It checks that each listed item has an installation record, that modifications added or removed equipment in step with the list, and that installed components carry release evidence. You receive a reconciled equipment list, the items that do not match the configuration, and the evidence needed to close each discrepancy.
When this review is needed
- A cabin reconfiguration or avionics upgrade has changed what is installed and the list needs reconciling.
- A buyer wants the equipment list confirmed against the actual configuration before pricing the aircraft.
- A return references a configuration the lessor needs to verify against the recorded equipment.
- An aircraft has passed through several operators and the list has drifted from the installation history.
The problem
The equipment list is meant to describe the aircraft as configured, but it is maintained by hand and updated only when someone remembers. A modification can add equipment that never reaches the list, a removal can leave a phantom entry, and a part swap can change a serial number the list still shows old. A list that reads as authoritative can describe an aircraft that no longer exists in that exact configuration.
What gets reviewed
- Each item on the equipment list by description, part number, and serial number
- The installation record placing each item on the aircraft
- Modifications that added or removed equipment and their reflection on the list
- Release evidence for installed components subject to release control
- Phantom entries for equipment removed but still listed
- Items installed but missing from the list
Scope this review
Tell us the asset, the event, and the evidence in scope, and we will outline a focused first engagement.
Send a representative, redacted record set and we will scope the review.
What gets validated
- Every listed item has an installation record placing it on the aircraft
- Modifications that changed equipment are reflected as additions or removals on the list
- Part and serial numbers on the list match the installation and release records
- Equipment removed by a modification has been deleted from the list
- Installed equipment subject to release control carries a valid release certificate
Evidence normally required
- The current equipment list and its revision history
- Modification records that added or removed equipment
- Component installation records and release certificates
- The weight statement equipment baseline for cross-reference
- Any prior configuration survey or list reconciliation
Common discrepancies
- Equipment added by a modification that never reached the list
- A phantom entry for equipment that was removed but stayed on the list
- A serial number on the list that does not match the installed component
- An installed item with no release evidence in the records
- A list revision that does not reconcile with the modification it should reflect
What is at stake
An equipment list that disagrees with the installed configuration undermines the weight statement, the modification status, and the operator's view of what is fitted. In a transaction, a list that cannot be reconciled forces a physical configuration check, and the time to reconcile after acceptance is the buyer's to spend.
Move from findings to resolution
Move from findings to a documented resolution path.
How the work runs
Read the list as configured
Take each entry on the equipment list by description, part number, and serial number as the claimed installed configuration.
Place each item by record
Match every entry to an installation record and cross-check modifications that should have added or removed equipment.
Check serials and releases
Confirm part and serial numbers agree with the installation and release evidence, and that release-controlled items carry a valid certificate.
Flag phantoms and orphans
Identify removed equipment still listed and installed equipment missing from the list, then set a closure path for each.
What the buyer receives
- A reconciled equipment list mapped to installation and modification records
- A list of items that do not match the configuration with the discrepancy named
- A recommended closure path for each gap, including release evidence to obtain
Who uses the output
- Continuing-airworthiness teams confirming the recorded configuration
- Records teams aligning the list with weight and modification status
- Acquisition and asset teams confirming what is actually fitted
How the work fits into the transaction or program
The review supports a pre-purchase, a redelivery, or post-modification closure by aligning the equipment list with the installed configuration. It feeds the weight-and-balance and modification-status work and the configuration section of a discrepancy register.
Jurisdiction-specific considerations
Equipment installed under one authority's approval may need to be confirmed acceptable to another when the aircraft changes registries. The review notes installed items whose approval basis the receiving authority will need to see.
Regulatory limits
The review confirms that the equipment list is complete, consistent, and traceable to installation and release evidence. It does not certify the configuration, approve a modification, or make an airworthiness determination.
What this review does not cover
- Physical inspection of the installed equipment
- Approval of a modification or installation
- Any airworthiness determination on the aircraft
Specific to this review
- The equipment list is hand-maintained, so removals are missed more often than additions and phantom entries accumulate over time.
- A wrong serial number on the list breaks the cross-reference to release evidence even when the right part is installed.
- The list, the weight statement, and the modification status should agree on equipment; a divergence among the three usually points to the same uncaptured change.
Sources
U.S. Government (eCFR). Records an owner or operator must keep, including total time in service, current status of life-limited parts, and AD compliance.
U.S. Government (eCFR). Maintenance recordkeeping content and approval-for-return-to-service requirements, including 43.9, 43.11, and Appendix B.
European Union / EASA. Continuing airworthiness, maintenance records, CAMO responsibilities, and the airworthiness review process in the EASA system.
Frequently asked questions
Does the review require a physical look at the aircraft?
No. It works from the equipment list, installation records, and modification history. Where the records cannot resolve a discrepancy, it identifies the items a physical configuration check would need to confirm.
Relevant glossary terms
Related pages
Where this fits
Talk to an engineer who has done this work
We will walk through your current state, the records or evidence involved, and a scoped first engagement.
Walk through your situation with an engineer who has done this work.