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Our practical guide to aircraft maintenance

Aircraft maintenance is a highly controlled operation to ensure the safety of both crew members and passengers. Its purpose is to ensure each aircraft complies with airworthiness standards and regulatory requirements. At Fortal Aeronautics Division, we understand the importance of reliable equipment to guarantee maintenance operation safety. Performed at different levels, the purpose of this mandatory technical operation is to anticipate all risks for the aircraft, in flight and on the ground. What is aircraft maintenance? Which equipment is needed to safely perform this maintenance? Discover different practical advice for aircraft maintenance in our guide.

What is maintenance for an aircraft?

Definition of aircraft maintenance

Aircraft maintenance involves various tasks to ensure aircraft safety and to keep aircraft in compliance with the airworthiness. It requires skills in aeronautical engineering, in mechanics, structures and avionics equipment systems, and a thorough understanding of regulations. These tasks involve inspections, repairs and maintenance repair overhauls performed in compliance with applicable standards. The purpose is to prevent major and minor failures of these aircraft and to avoid the risk of incident or accident.
Aircraft maintenance is divided into several types. The most important are preventive maintenance and corrective maintenance. Preventive maintenance anticipates failures and troubles with inspections, part exchanges and servicing. Preventive maintenance tasks are scheduled.
Corrective maintenance is performed when equipment or a part is broken or doesn’t work, in order to restore the availability of the aircraft. Corrective maintenance tasks are not scheduled.
These tasks are performed by certified technicians like avionics, mechanics and structural technicians.

The role of a maintenance technician

In aeronautics, a maintenance technician works in a team, and each member is specialized in a sector. This team has to perform repairs and servicing of airplanes, helicopters, and other kinds of aircraft.
There are many specialists in aeronautical maintenance, for example:

  • The mechanic works on different specific parts of aircraft, like powerplants and turbines, hydraulic systems, flaps, pedals, landing gears.
  • The avionics technician is a specialist in electrical equipment and technology, like alternators, screens, autopilot, radios and navigation systems and each equipment in the cockpit.
  • The structural technician works on the airframe of the aircraft, wings, stabilizers and other parts, to repair them.

A maintenance technician regularly communicates with crew members, and especially with the pilots, in a bid to know if the aircraft does not have any problem or failures.

Skills needed to become a maintenance technician

In aeronautics, in compliance with airworthiness regulations, all technicians must have the appropriate certificates and degrees.
To work in this sector, many skills are necessary:

  • To have technical knowledge, such as electricity, electronics, mechanics, technology.
  • How to use tools.
  • The ability to work as part of a team, follow instructions, and communicate effectively.
  • To be observant, have analytical thinking and pay attention to detail.
  • To know and respect safety rules and aeronautical regulations.

What does a maintenance technician need?

To accomplish their tasks effectively, maintenance technicians need various types of tools and equipment, including:

  • Personal protective equipment.
  • Tools, such as screwdrivers, hammers etc.
  • Specific maintenance tools, adapted for each aircraft, such as benches to repair or calibrate some equipment, computers to update software equipment, etc.
  • General aeronautical tools, like stepladders, towing bars, docks, access.

Working conditions of a maintenance technician

A maintenance technician can work in different places, like in an air force base (for example, a U.S Air force base), in an airport, or in a manufacturer’s workshop (such as Boeing and Airbus).
In any case, a technician can work outdoors directly on the aircraft which is in the apron, or inside in a hangar.
Depending on the type of equipment on the aircraft to be inspected, some operations can be complex, particularly because of the difficulty of access and the risks associated with working at height. To ensure safe working conditions, a maintenance technician uses adapted equipment to access constraints for aircraft maintenance.

At Fortal, we have custom-made products to meet these needs. Our comprehensive range of runway stepladders and aircraft access equipment is designed to reduce the risk of falls and accidents. We market ergonomic, standards-compliant products that can be adapted to different types of aircraft.

There are different maintenance levels in aeronautical: entry levels

Maintenance can be performed in two different levels:

  • In line/flight line. The main mission of the flightline is to prepare the aircraft for its flights, and keep the aircraft available. They prepare for take-off, landing, flights and stop over. Technicians prepare aircraft and refuel them. Through several daily visits, they check everything and determine whether the aircraft is in condition for safe flight. They also perform light preventive and corrective maintenance. If the aircraft has a major failure or several preventive tasks, which need a long time of unavailability, it will be sent to the base/maintenance line.
  • In base/maintenance line. At the base, the aircraft is unavailable, and the mission is to return it available. Technicians perform all preventive tasks if there are, and especially carry out heavy repairs.

Why choose Fortal equipment for your aeronautical maintenance?

Maintenance tasks need reliable equipment, ergonomic that meets the extremely strict standard of aviation. Fortal’s products are known to facilitate maintenance operations, and for all different ranges of aircraft, from civilian aviation, or military, business, and even space aviation. We have a complete range of standard aeronautical equipment and custom-made in aluminum:

What are the different types of aeronautical maintenance?

Aircraft, whether planes, helicopters, or spacecraft, are subject to extreme conditions of use : temperature variation, pressure variation, high speeds, buffeting, vibration and acceleration. These specific features can lead to technical failures, mechanical breakdowns or accelerated wear of components. The aeronautical maintenance has a key role to ensure the smooth operation of aircraft, but also to provide the best safety to crew members and passengers during flights.
Therefore, with proper maintenance, the lifespan of an aircraft is very increased. The cost of the aircraft is better amortized, and its potential resale value is higher.
To limit the malfunctions, aircraft maintenance is divided into several categories, the most important are preventive maintenance and corrective maintenance. Each one has a specific role in preventing and managing failures.

Preventive maintenance

Preventive maintenance aims to detect and anticipate potential failures, before they occur through regular inspections and checks. It’s a mandatory operation to prevent in-flight accidents and incidents. It can be performed in different ways, some examples:

  • Systematic visits: before and after each flight, and also during stopovers, technicians check different points on the aircraft, like oil level, if there is a leak, airframe damages, if all systems are functioning, in general if the aircraft is in condition to fly safely.
  • Periodical maintenance: inspections, checks, cleaning or exchange of parts according to a defined schedule and forecasting.
  • Condition-based maintenance: monitoring of aircraft systems using a set of probes, sensors, calculators and diagnostic tools.

These different types of preventive maintenance need the use of reliable equipment, ergonomic and standards-compliance products, to allow technicians working efficiently and in safety. Fortal equipment gives better performance to technicians with a wide range of stepladders perfectly adapted to all circumstances and to the needs of aeronautical workers.

Corrective maintenance

Despite regular preventive maintenance, some failures or malfunctions can occur involving corrective tasks and repairs. Corrective maintenance aims to make the aircraft available again and in flight-line as soon as possible. Usually, it’s a whole task which consists of repairing and replacing breakdown parts. To perform these repairs quickly, it’s important for all aeronautical workshops to have a stock of replacing items, or to have an efficient logistic system to bring them as soon as possible. These parts and replacing items must comply with the standards and norms imposed by regulatory authorities (e.g EASA, FAA) and manufacturers.

Aircraft maintenance regulations

Aeronautical maintenance follows a strict regulation to ensure the safety of crew members, passengers and aircraft. The goal is to try to harmonize maintenance practices between each country in order to avoid accidents.
Before being cleared for flight, every aircraft must obtain an airworthiness certificate from aviation safety authorities. This document certifies that the aircraft complies with all technical and regulatory requirements.

The role of regulatory authorities

Regulatory authorities have a key role in aviation safety. They define safety standards, supervise their application and issue airworthiness certificates. Among these organizations, some stand out for their influence and area of intervention.

European union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA)

Founded in 2002, The European union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) is considered one of the most important regulatory authorities for civil aviation in Europe. Its mission is to provide a high level of security for the 27 members of the European Union, of Iceland, of Liechtenstein and Switzerland. EASA’s role is to:

  • harmonize norms and standards inside European Union;
  • issue airworthiness certificate in Europe;
  • define aviation technical rules;
  • improve the European market air transport;
  • oversee air operation safety;
  • promote European and global safety standards.

International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)

Founded in 1944 under the framework of the Chicago convention, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) is an agency that defines international standards, norms and recommendations for air safety.
It has a key role in coordinating norms between different member countries and the implementation of uniform safety practices.

Civil Aviation Authority (CAA)

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) oversees regulations of civilian aviation in the United-Kingdom and in several other countries. Its main aim is to monitor the good respect of aeronautic rules and to oversee the safety of air operations. In case of non-compliance with rules, CAA can sue individuals and companies that fail to follow these rules.

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)

The Federal Aviation AdministrationThe Federal Aviation Administration is an agency of the US Department of Transportation responsible for regulation and civil aviation in the United States. It is one of the most important global agencies responsible for aircraft certification. The FAA influences international standards and norms through decision-making and cooperation with EASA and ICAO.

A decrease in accidents due to aeronautical maintenance and regulations

Nowadays, the number of aircraft in the sky has increased and the number of passengers too. Despite this, with better maintenance, and new strict regulations to handle them, the number of crashes, accidents and incidents has decreased. On average, between 1970 and 2000-2005, there were 2000 deaths and 250 incidents per year. For example, in 2023, there were only 229 deaths and 82 incidents.
Today, airplanes have become the safest means of transport in the world.

Aeronautical maintenance has an essential mission : to ensure the aircraft airworthiness, flight safety and maintain passenger confidence. It is monitored and led by a whole of operations, supervised by strict norms. These norms are defined by regulatory authorities like the EASA, FAA, ICAO and the CAA. These operations include minor to major overhauls and repairs of powerplants and equipment. Aircraft maintenance anticipates technical malfunctions and improves the aircraft lifespan.

Fortal Aeronautics Division propose a range of stepladders for aircraft to meet the needs of the aeronautical market. We are committed to provide to our customers reliable equipment, ergonomic and standards-compliance products, to ensure corrective and preventive maintenance of aircraft. We are also engaged in continuous research and development in order to improve our equipment and adapt to the constant technological evolution of the aeronautical industry.

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