NBAA-BACE 2026 Experts Flag Tariff Uncertainty, Sanctions Due Diligence, FAA Deadlines and Falsification Risk

Legal experts reviewed tariff, sanctions and regulatory issues facing business aviation at the 2026 NBAA-BACE. Three attorneys covered separate areas: trade and sanctions, pending FAA rulemaking, and the FAA's approach to falsification.

Jonathan M. Epstein, a partner in the Washington, DC, office of Holland & Knight, said the changing U.S. tariff environment has created significant uncertainty for aircraft operators, manufacturers and buyers over the past two years. In early 2025, the United States began imposing substantial tariffs on products from countries around the world, including aircraft and aircraft parts, relying on the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) of 1977. He said the tariffs had unforeseen consequences for business aviation, particularly given the Agreement on Trade in Civil Aircraft.

Epstein also discussed international restrictions. Venezuela has become more accessible for U.S. flights, and Syria has eased certain flight restrictions although export controls remain. Cuba presents challenges involving potential secondary sanctions and fuel shortages, while the United States has suspended authorizations for temporary sojourns by foreign-registered aircraft to Iran and for overflights. He noted that the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) recently sanctioned more than 600 additional entities and individuals, and that under OFAC's 50% ownership rule, restrictions can extend to entities owned 50% or more by sanctioned parties.

Jason Maddux, a shareholder at GGH Air Law, reviewed pending regulatory issues. A proposed passenger-rights document stemming from the 2018 FAA Reauthorization Act remains under review, covering delays, diversions, cancellations, mishandled baggage and denied boarding.

It is unclear whether the definition of "covered air carrier" could include Part 135 operators, charter brokers and cargo carriers. Compliance would be due 90 days after approval, but timing is uncertain. The FAA's radio altimeter compliance deadline for Parts 91 and 135 operations is Oct. 31, 2034, and Maddux warned about supply-chain risk around that date.

Greg Reigel, an aviation attorney and partner at Shackelford, McKinley & Norton LLP in Dallas, said the FAA's recently revised approach to falsification of records, applications and other statements has broad implications. The rules apply to information ranging from medical certification and maintenance records to aircraft documentation.

They can extend beyond intentional fraud to information a person knows or should know is false, or to omissions. Certificate revocation has been a common consequence, and civil penalties may also be considered, including for noncertificated entities.

The three sessions describe exposure that sits in different places but compounds for the same companies. Tariff policy built on emergency-powers authority moves with each executive decision, so pricing and delivery assumptions for aircraft and parts carry a policy variable that sits outside any contract. Sanctions exposure works differently: under a 50% ownership test, a counterparty's status can change without any action by the operator, so screening is an ongoing process rather than a one-time onboarding check.

The records standard Reigel described matters for a segment where much of the paperwork is produced by small teams under time pressure. A rule that reaches information a person should have known was false, plus omissions, raises the cost of loose maintenance entries and sloppy applications, and the reach to noncertificated entities means brokers and management companies sit inside the same zone as certificate holders.

Two items have dates or triggers attached. The passenger-rights document is still under review, and the scope question on Part 135 operators and charter brokers will be settled when it is approved, with compliance due 90 days after that. The radio altimeter deadline of Oct. 31, 2034 is far off, but the supply-chain concern Maddux raised is a reason the schedule can tighten well before it arrives.