AOG Technics Director Gets 4+ Years for $9M Fake Aircraft Parts Fraud

AOG Technics Director Sentenced for Massive Parts Fraud

Jose Alejandro Zamora Yrala, 38, was sentenced Feb. 23 at Southwark Crown Court to four years and eight months in prison for fraudulent trading involving more than 60,000 counterfeit parts for CFM56 turbofan engines that power Boeing 737s and Airbus A320s. The scheme generated £7.7 million in revenue through forged Authorized Release Certificates that bypassed regulatory oversight, allowing fake parts to enter airline supply chains between January 2019 and July 2023. Zamora pleaded guilty in December 2025 after the operation collapsed when Safran identified a forged certificate, sparking global safety alerts.

Global Impact on Aviation Safety

The fraud centered on forged ARCs produced on Zamora's home computer in Surrey, where he fabricated employee identities and falsified OEM purchase orders. Counterfeit parts were shipped to airlines worldwide, including American Airlines and Ethiopian Airlines, triggering regulatory scrutiny from the CAA, FAA and EASA. The scheme prompted aircraft groundings in 2023 and generated an estimated $53 million in industry losses, creating what regulators called a "blind spot" in supply-chain verification.

Industry Response and Reform

Serious Fraud Office Director of Operations Emma Luxton said the operation "risked public safety on a global scale," while Judge Simon Picken described it as "a more or less complete undermining of a regulatory framework designed to safeguard the millions of people who fly every day." The case has prompted industry-wide calls for tighter documentation controls and improved audit procedures across the aircraft-on-ground parts sector to prevent similar frauds.