Sean Broderick covers aviation safety, MRO, and the hardware side of the airline business from Aviation Week Network's Washington, D.C. office.
Broderick's aviation career started in 1991, working for Airbus in Toulouse. His industry experience includes four years with an aviation consultancy, where he helped launch a U.S. Part 121 carrier; 12 years with the American Association of Airport Executives, where he served as editor of Airport Magazine; and 20 years in full- and part-time roles with Aviation Week writing primarily about safety and the aftermarket.
Broderick was named the 2020 Aerospace Journalist of the Year by the Aerospace Media Awards. He also shared in a 2020 Neal Award for Best News Coverage with Aviation Week Network colleagues. Broderick and Aviation Week colleague John Croft shared the 2015 Flight Safety International Cecil A. Brownlow Publication Award recognizing "significant contributions by journalists to aviation safety awareness."
He graduated from James Madison University with a B.S. in Communications ('91) and earned an M.S. in Integrated Marketing Communications ('13) from West Virginia University.
FAA is urging transport category aircraft operators and repair stations to check inventories and maintenance records for windows and other glass parts that may have been part of an elaborate records falsification scheme by a former repair station in Florida.
The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), resisting industry suggestions to address the problem with new maintenance recommendations, has ordered CFM56-3 and -7 operators to replace accessory gearboxes (AGBs) to prevent oil leaks caused by incorrectly reinstalled covers.
A proposed tightening of the FAA’s English language proficiency requirements for key repair station employees is being criticized by Japan Airlines and Rockwell Collins. In its draft rewrite of Part 145 certification, the agency proposes that supervisory personnel, inspection personnel and anyone authorized to approve an article for return to service be required to “understand, speak, read and write English.” The current rule has similar requirements, with one key difference: the regulations do not require spoken English.
