US Initiates National Security Investigation Into Aircraft, Jet Engine Imports

The United States was the largest importer of aircraft parts in the world in 2023, bringing in $15.3 billion worth of these goods.

A US-made F-16V fighter jet taxis on the runway at an airforce base during Taiwan's annual Han Kuang military drills in Hualien, Taiwan, on July 23, 2024. Sam Yeh/AFP via Getty Images

The Commerce Department initiated an investigation on May 1 to determine the impacts of commercial aircraft and jet engine imports on national security, it said in a May 9 notice.

The investigation is being conducted under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, which grants the American president broad powers to adjust imports if they are a national security threat. The measure empowers the president to initiate actions such as tariffs to tackle the issue.