Article 102: Amendment to Regulation (EC) No 300/2008

Article 102 is one of a series of amendment articles in Chapter XIII that integrate the AI Act into existing EU sector legislation. Its specific target is Regulation (EC) No 300/2008, which establishes common rules on civil aviation security — covering airport security, in-flight security, cargo screening, and the equipment used for these purposes.

The amendment inserts a reference to Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 (the AI Act) so that where AI systems are embedded in aviation security equipment or processes, conformity assessment and ongoing compliance must account for both regimes. This follows the AI Act's general approach under Article 8: when an AI system is a safety component of a product covered by Union harmonisation legislation listed in Annex I, the AI Act obligations are folded into the product's existing regulatory framework rather than creating a parallel, standalone compliance track.

In practice, this means that aviation security equipment manufacturers cannot argue that aviation-specific certification alone satisfies AI requirements — the AI Act's risk management, data governance, transparency, and human oversight obligations apply on top of the existing aviation security baseline.

• Article 8 — Compliance of high-risk AI systems with existing sector legislation: the master provision that explains how AI Act obligations integrate with product-level Union harmonisation legislation. Article 102 is the specific amendment that brings Regulation 300/2008 into this framework.
• Annex I — Union harmonisation legislation (Section A): lists the sector legislation whose conformity assessment procedures apply to high-risk AI systems. After the Article 102 amendment, aviation security equipment containing AI falls under this integrated regime.
• Article 9 — Risk management system: AI-powered screening equipment must implement continuous risk management covering the specific risks of AI misclassification (e.g., false negatives on threat detection).
• Article 43 — Conformity assessment: determines which conformity assessment route applies; for Annex I products, the existing sectoral assessment procedure applies with AI Act requirements integrated.
• Article 113 — Entry into force and application dates: confirms the staged timeline, including when Article 102 becomes operationally relevant.

For equipment manufacturers: - Audit every AI component in your aviation security product portfolio. If a screening device, detection algorithm, or monitoring system uses AI, it must be assessed against AI Act requirements. - Update technical documentation to include AI-specific elements: training data descriptions, performance metrics, bias analysis, and human oversight mechanisms. - Coordinate with your notified body — they will need to assess AI Act compliance as part of the aviation security equipment certification process.

For airport operators (deployers): - Review procurement specifications for AI-based security equipment to require AI Act compliance evidence from suppliers. - Implement deployer obligations: ensure human oversight at security checkpoints where AI-assisted decisions are made, maintain usage logs, and monitor system performance post-deployment. - Train security personnel on the AI system's capabilities and limitations — they must understand when to override automated decisions.

For national aviation authorities: - Update inspection and audit frameworks to include AI Act compliance checks alongside existing aviation security assessments. - Coordinate with national AI market surveillance authorities to avoid duplicative or conflicting enforcement actions.