Aircraft exterior maintenance in danger with heat waves

With the extreme temperatures becoming a usual summer occurrence for Europe – some regions reaching as high as 45°C – the now long-lasting and more frequent sweltering temperatures are a rather new problem for European airlines, as well as maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) service providers are facing.

The extreme heat has become the main culprit in damaging the surface paint of aircraft fuselages, resulting in potential safety risks and grounded aircraft. According to Jan Brunstedt, CEO of Aviator Robotics AB and the creator of Nordic Dino, more frequent aircraft exterior upkeep should be a top priority.

Brunstedt notes that the traditional way of cleaning the exterior of an aircraft – which means involving a sizeable crew of washers, equipment, and more – could only add to the problem. Manually washing an aircraft, more often than not, means a bigger chance for human errors and additional damage to the paints like accidentally scraping the fuselage with a scissor lift, for example. Semi-automatic washing solutions that only require one person to manage and operate the washing robot is a cost-effective alternative.

Some manufacturers attribute chipping and cracking experior paints to the cosmetics and don’t necessarily see it as a risk, while a number of carriers treat it as a risk.

“Whether regarded as a risk or not, unkept and untreated, the lifted parts of paint absorb dirt, humidity, which, in turn, can cause problems as serious as corrosion. It is very much of a snowball effect when it comes to properly take care of the exterior of the aircraft. One small oversight can lead to another bigger one until it becomes a very serious problem, Brunstedt says”.