Contributed by Interior Modification Reps. Nate Darlington and Matthew Schepers
With proper planning, a complete interior modification can be effectively phased over several years of regularly scheduled maintenance events.
Interior maintenance plans plans help operators anticipate and plan for aircraft interior maintenance by making note of functionality and appearance, planning interior services and budgeting more effectively. If a plan is followed, it also helps reduce long term costs, avoids extra downtime and keeps the interior in pristine condition.
To develop your own interior maintenance plan, try getting started with these four steps.
1. Assess how the aircraft is used.
Aircraft that fly longer missions with more passengers are likely to experience more damage to finishes and softgoods over a shorter period of time. Anticipate that interior repairs and touch-ups will be needed more frequently.
2. Estimate the lifespan of interior items.
Make a complete list of items that target all aspects of an interior—from softgoods to veneer, from the cockpit to the aft baggage compartment—and estimate how long each item will last before it begins to look worn.
3. Identify required maintenance events.
Identify inspection intervals, estimated downtimes and what (if any) interior items will be affected by each inspection.
4. Match interior repairs with inspections that require similar downtimes.
Inspections that require removal and reinstallation of interior items are a prime opportunity to repair those items. For example, inspections that require the removal of seats and floorboards are a prime opportunity to replace carpet and recover seats without extending the service schedule.
Estimating downtimes and determining what interior services can, or should, be scheduled with which events can get complicated quickly. Duncan Aviation works with operators to create custom interior maintenance schedules for Directors of Maintenance (DOMs) and their aircraft, free of cost or obligation. For more information, or to request a phased interior maintenance schedule, please visit www.DuncanAviation.aero/interior.
Nate Darlington serves as an Interior Modifications Rep. at Duncan Aviation’s Battle Creek, Michigan facility, and began working in aviation in 2001. Matthew Schepers also serves as an Interior Modifications Rep. at Duncan Aviation’s Lincoln, Nebraska facility, and began working in aviation in 2005. Nate and Matthew both work with operators to plan phased interior maintenance schedules for their aircraft.
