Chapter 6 Requirements for a Maintenance Program

Facultad de Ingeniería y Ciencias Básicas

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 Introduction
Regulatory and additional maintenance requirements need to be adhered to in order to achieve the
objectives of a sound maintenance program.

Maintenance Program Objectives

1. To ensure the realization of the inherent safety and reliability levels of equipment.
2. To restore safety and reliability to their inherent levels when deterioration has occurred.
3. To obtain the information necessary for adjustment and optimization of the maintenance program when
these inherent levels are not met.
4. To obtain the information necessary for design improvement of those items whose inherent reliability
proves inadequate.
5. To accomplish these objectives at a minimum total cost, including the costs of maintenance and the cost
of residual failures.

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 Aviation Maintenance Program
Outlined (AC 120-16E)
The AC 120-16E is the type of information provided by the FAA to the aviation community. The FAA requires each
commercial airline to have an operations specifications (Ops Specs) document authorizing maintenance program,
and it describes the elements listed below:

1. Airworthiness responsibility
2. Air carrier maintenance manual
3. Air carrier maintenance organization
4. Maintenance record keeping system
5. Accomplishment and approval of maintenance and alterations
6. Maintenance schedule 7. Required inspection items (RII)
7. Contract maintenance
8. Personnel training
9. Continuous analysis and surveillance system (CASS)

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 FAR 121.373 requires
That each operator to have a “continuing analysis and surveillance” (CASS) effort to ensure the maintenance and
inspection programs are effective FAR 121.380 – record keeping – maintenance recording requirements FAR
121.380a – txfr of maintenance records FAR 43.2 – records of overhaul and rebuilding FAR 43.9 and 43.11 – content,
form, and disposition of records All have been incorporated in the AMP Aviation Maintenance Program Outlined (AC
120-16E with Chg 1)

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Airworthiness responsibility

 The airline must adhere to the FAA approved

maintenance program the Ops Specs identifies.
 Can be modified with appropriate justification and
approval of the FAA
 The airline is “ULTIMATELY” responsible for
maintaining its own aircraft in an airworthy
condition regardless of who actually performs the
maintenance.

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Air carrier maintenance manual

 It is a system of manuals and an expansion of the

manufacturer’s manuals
 The maintenance manual is the primary, all-inclusive,
expression of how maintenance will be conducted and
how the program will be monitored and improved.

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 Air carrier maintenance organization
The FAA states: “An airline must have a maintenance organization
that is able to perform, supervise, manage, and amend your
program, manage and guide your maintenance personnel, and
provide the direction necessary to achieve your maintenance
program objectives.” The essential elements of this organization
as discussed in the AC are summarized as follows:

 A director of maintenance (DOM). Responsible for overall

maintenance activity. Must hold a current FAA A&P rating.
 A chief inspector. Responsible for all RII functions (for part
121 operator).
 Management duties and responsibilities and their current
functions as the maintenance site, including their names.

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 Air carrier maintenance organization

 An organization or process to develop and upgrade maintenance manuals that describes all aspects of the
maintenance program.
 Procedures to ensure that all aircraft released for service after maintenance are airworthy and properly
maintained with the safety.
 Management personnel are qualified and have sufficient experience and expertise to effectively delegate,
manage, and control the maintenance program without any confusion.
 The inspection function for RII, an integral part of maintenance, must be separated from other routine
inspection and daily maintenance functions.
 Oversight and management activities to ensure all maintenance functions are being accomplished in
accordance and managements’ effort to ensure that the maintenance program remains effective.

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 Maintenance Record-keeping
 FAA requires an airline to keep accurate records of maintenance and alteration activities.
Two types required:
• Summary information and airworthiness status information
• Maintenance logbook – in aircraft and “home” activity
 Includes flt time
 Fuel
 crew data
 crew maintenance
 related problems
 corrective action
 Mechanical reliability report (MRR)
 Mechanical Interruption Summary (MIS)

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 Accomplishment & Approval
of Maintenance & Alterations 
• Program must include instructions for conducting maintenance on the aircraft as well as specific maintenance
for
 Engines
 Propellers
 Parts
 appliances
 Scheduled on aircraft and off.
 Unscheduled on aircraft and off.
• Must address aging and corrosion problems
• Required Inspection Items (RIIs) – FAA defined as “those items that could result in unsafe operation of the
aircraft if maintenance is not performed correctly or if improper parts are used.”
FAA doesn’t specify but requires airline to identify its own, in writing, the mechanics qualified and authorized to
perform those inspections.

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 Maintenance Schedule

• FAA requires a schedule which identifies what, who, when or how often maintenance is to be performed.
• Tasks are found in the Maint Review Board, Maint Planning Data
• Intervals – flt hrs, cycles, calendar time, daily, every flt, or flt hrs – 200, 300 etc.
• It is an airline’s responsibility to adjust the initial MRB schedule to comply with individual airline needs. 11
 Contract Maintenance
• Airline “ULTIMATELY” responsible for ALL maintenance
• Airline is responsible for providing outside units with proper training on your procedures
and for assuring that these outside units have the personnel, skills, and facilities to
accommodate the work required.

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 Personnel Training
• FAR states, “have a training program to ensure that each person (including inspection personnel) who
determines the adequacy of work done is fully informed about procedures and techniques and new equipment
in use and is competent to perform the duties.”
• Many require an airframe and power plant license (A&P) – just means qualified for the job
• Must have
 orientation
 trained on policies
 Procedures
 equipment configuration

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 Continuing Analysis &
Surveillance System (CASS)
• Fed Aviation Reg. (FAR) requires that a monitoring program exists and ensures maintenance and inspection
programs outlined in the Ops Specs are effective.
• CASS is a program to detect and correct deficiencies in maintenance program effectiveness and performance.
• Looks at problem areas, determines corrective action, tracks the activity to determine effectiveness of the
correction.
• Data collection and analysis, daily monitoring of all activities of maintenance, suppliers, and its contractors.

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Summary of FAA Requirements

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Additional Maintenance Program Requirements

 Engineering
 Materiel
 Planning
 Maintenance Control Center
 Training
 Computing
 Publications

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 Engineering
• Primary purpose is to establish the initial
maintenance program from the manufacturer’s
maintenance manual and other documents and to
upgrade the program over time.
• Provide technical assistance, review
manufacturers service bulletins, changes, and
provide engineering expertise to the company or
hired consultants in the design of facilities or
modification.

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 Materiel (Supply)
• Provide maintenance with parts and supplies to carry out maintenance activities.
• Includes purchasing and warehousing of the parts, supplies and tools.
• Handle warranty claims and pass on the repairable components to the appropriate
workshop or vendor for repair.

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 Planning
• Responsible for planning all of the scheduled maintenance including manpower, facilities, and supplies needed
• Also to collect data on the time, manpower, facilities actually used to subsequently plan for future maintenance
actions/requirements.

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 Maintenance Control Center
The nerve center of line maintenance
• Responsible for keeping track of all vehicles and service and status
• Coordinates the numerous activities between operations, engineering and
maintenance and within the various maintenance work centers.
• Coordinates the personnel for troubleshooting, repair or parts assistance
required.

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 Training
Responsible for follow on training and upgraded skills as required.
• May even coordinate initial training.
• Maintains records of all training, qualifications, and certifications of all personnel assigned.
• Trains engineers, supervisors, managers, inspectors not only maintenance specific but managerial/supervisory
roles.

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 Computing
Provides the equipment, software, training and support for all computing activities.
Includes:
• Data collection on malfunctions
• Parts tracking and control
• Collection and manipulating reliability data (MTBF)
• Failure rates, removal rates
• Tracking of serial numbered items

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 Publications
• Responsible for keeping all technical publications up to date
• Paper, microfilm, or electronic media
• Distributes to appropriate work centers
• Provides revisions and additions
• Inspects periodically for completeness
• Maintains Master Library

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GRACIAS

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