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B U S I N E S S A V I A T I O N 12 May 2014 AIRCRAFT MAINTENANCE TECHNOLOGY ation, and two G150s to transport tech- nicians and essential parts to aircraft at airports in North and Central America and the Caribbean. "In cases where an operator's aircraft is located outside the G150's range of service, Gulfstream will f ly the needed parts and technicians to a major hub to connect with commercial airline f lights to reach the customer's aircraft." In January 2014 Gulfstream intro- duced a specially equipped 74-foot trac- tor-trailer staffed to provide maintenance and support for aircraft owners attending more than 20 major events around the country. This mobile service center has special tools, a generator, air compres- sor, satellite dish, Wi-Fi connectivity and the top 10 parts most often needed. The A MTs assigned to the truck can make minor repairs, change engines, replace LRUs, and conduct post f light, unsched- uled and storage inspections. These lucky A MTs have an office, computers to access technical data, and break room complete with lounge, galley kitchen, and stocked freezer and refrigerator. We spoke to Darrell Frey, direc- tor regional service center operations, for his perspective on the growth and delivery of mobile services. "Product rates have grown and we need to support both in- and out-of-production aircraft. Developing the FAST trucks and teams is one way we are going to keep up. Our biggest FAST vehicle is used for major events where there will be a congregation of Gulfstream aircraft operators such as the Masters Tournament and large busi- ness board meetings. "Speaking to the next 25 years, our big- gest challenge will be managing informa- tion, communications, and technology to keep our customers and employees con- nected 24/7. Today we use Gulfstream's intranet, the Internet, Skype, and Studio G in Savannah's multimedia center to share best practices, technical data, and information around the globe." Stevens Aviation Stevens Aviation is a large U.S. company with a long history of providing aircraft maintenance, modification, and refur- bishment services from its fixed base operations. It recently placed a mobile maintenance unit at the Signature Flight Support Hangar in Centennial Airport, CO, to provide service as far away as Wyoming, Idaho, and Utah. We asked crew lead, Tim Schilling and general manager, Robert Wyatt to describe the business and technology drivers that moved them to expand their field and mobile maintenance organization. "Aviation in general is dependent on the health of the overall economy. We see business rebounding and the maintenance business growing again, albeit slowly. However, the competi- tion among FAR 145 operators for new business is brutal. Customers are more attentive to their maintenance needs, better educated about aircraft mainte- nance, and aware of what services other FAR 145 operators offer. They expect mobile service because if they break down, they want to know that we will be there to get them f lying again. We also see an increase in fractional own- ership and FAR 135 operations and to attract their business, it is critical that we provide good mobile service. Those customers are generating revenue so when their aircraft are out of service, they must get repaired as fast as possible. "Previously we needed the aircraft at our facilities to perform maintenance but with advances in aircraft and commu- nications technologies, providing field services is much easier. Now if we find damage or see a crack in the field, we use smart phones to take a picture, email it to the customer and discuss next steps. We can take a photo of the f light log and email that to the customer to release the aircraft. Before these advancements, you couldn't get in touch with the AMTs until they reached the AOG location and called in; now we maintain continuous commu- nications between Tech Support and our Computers allow Stevens Aviation technicians to download fault data, perform troubleshooting, and be better prepared before leaving for the AOG. STEVENS AVIATION AMT_10-15_BusinessAviation.indd 12 4/17/14 4:13 PM