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U.S. aircraft maintenance companies lost a federal court appeal aimed at stopping Federal Aviation Administration-required drug testing of technicians at hundreds of subcontractors.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, ruling 2-1 on Wednesday, rejected arguments that the rule was arbitrary and improper in a lawsuit brought by the Aeronautical Repair Station Association, a trade group based in Alexandria, Va.

The Tucson area is home to several large aerospace maintenance operations, including Hamilton Aerospace Technologies Inc. and Bombardier Aerospace at Tucson International Airport and Evergreen Air Center in Marana.

A Hamilton Aerospace official said he wasn't aware of the ruling but the company already requires proof of drug-testing for technicians who perform "touch labor," or hands-on maintenance work.

"Obviously, we have our own drug-testing program, and all of our subcontractors have to show proof of participation in a FAA-approved drug-testing program," said Gordon D. Hamilton, a director of Hamilton parent Global Aircraft Solutions Inc.

The association — whose members include Boeing Co.; AAR Corp., a provider of maintenance to airlines; and United Technologies Corp.'s jet-engine maker Pratt & Whitney — said the rule would add costs of as much as $350 a year for workers who do tasks such as dry-clean seat covers.

Aircraft maintenance contractors are trying to control expenses after receiving more airline business in recent years. The percentage of U.S. airline maintenance budgets that went to contractors rose to 64 percent last year from 37 percent in 1996, Calvin Scovel, the U.S. Transportation Department's inspector general, said in congressional testimony last month.

The FAA expanded drug testing in January 2006 to include "each person who performs a safety-sensitive function," including subcontractors "at any tier."

The agency said at the time the rule was needed because it had given conflicting guidance since 1989 on when subcontractors would be subject to testing.