Maintenance Safety

Many of us recognize one of the ingredients to making our flying less risky and safer is good maintenance. At the same time, sometimes we give little thought to ways to make aircraft maintenance itself less risky and safer. The fact is the typical private-pilot-or-better performing preventive maintenance under FAR 43, Annex A doesnt pay enough attention to safety while working on aircraft. Some professionals dont either.

A Bartlett

Tuesday, June 20, 2017 at 12:00 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

Prioritize safety in aircraft maintenance through meticulous planning, clear focus, and strict adherence to approved procedures, service manuals, and component-specific data.
Always use the correct, often specialized, tools for each task and implement rigorous tool control to prevent injuries, aircraft damage, and catastrophic failures from improvised methods or forgotten items.
Maintain a high level of awareness regarding specific inherent dangers, including high-pressure systems, hazardous chemicals, electrical shorts, and the unique risks associated with complex systems like retractable landing gear.

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Many of us recognize one of the ingredients to making our flying less risky and safer is good maintenance. At the same time, sometimes we give little thought to ways to make aircraft maintenance itself less risky and safer. The fact is the typical private-pilot-or-better performing preventive maintenance under FAR 43, Annex A doesn’t pay enough attention to safety while working on aircraft. Some “professionals” don’t either.

As an aircraft mechanic and pilot for over 50 years, I have witnessed more than one accident resulting in injury while working on aircraft. But a little common sense goes a long way toward working safely and promoting a safe work environment around aircraft when working with others or alone.