Export Rules for U.S. Military Aircraft Proposed

The Obama administration has released new draft rules for the export of U.S. military aircraft and associated parts, taking one more step in its ongoing reform effort.

In July, the White House introduced draft rules that outlined how the administration plans to move items off the U.S. Munitions List (USML), which is administered by the State Department, and onto the Commerce Control List (CCL), overseen by the Commerce Department.

Items on the USML - from aircraft to generic parts and components - are all subject to the same controls. However, the CCL's controls are tailored to what the item is and where it is being exported.

This summer, the Obama administration also released details for the first category - Category VII: tanks and military vehicles - as a test case to demonstrate how such transfers could take place.

The Nov. 7 announcement about aircraft is the second category to be released, while the administration continues to work out the transfer details for the remaining categories. Military aircraft and associated parts make up category VIII of the USML.

The Aerospace Industry Association, a leading advocate for export control reform, described the announcement as a "major milestone in the ongoing effort to control more appropriately exports to our allies of sensitive technology.

"The proposed revisions to Category VIII replace vague regulatory language with greater specificity for items remaining on the USML and the creation of new, stronger controls for items moved to the CCL - a proposal that AIA made early in the Obama administration," a statement from the aerospace lobby said.

The draft rules will now be open to a public comment period during which the White House will accept feedback from industry and Capitol Hill.

Defense News