GE Aviation scores key Air Force approval for 3D-printed metal engine part The United States Air Force has granted GE Aviation an airworthiness qualification for its F110 metal sump cover created using additive manufacturing. This milestone achievement takes place as part of the company’s pathfinder Pacer Edge program, an initiative intended to highlight the use of industrial 3D printing in the aerospace industry. Additive manufacturing, which is an industry term for what consumers popularly know as 3D printing, is a promising technology that may change the way certain things are built. We’ve seen this technology used for things like ‘printing’ housing structures and NASA has previously explored the technology as a possible way to create necessary components on-demand in future space missions.