Aircraft Maintenance Technology

APR 2017

The aircraft maintenance professional's source for technological advancements, maintenance alerts, news, articles, events, and careers

Issue link: http://amt.epubxp.com/i/814701

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 7 of 67

BUSINESS AVIATION Having a good partner to work with to source these types of needs can save you and your customers both money and downtime and can increase your bottom line. 8 APRIL 2017 AIRCRAFT MAINTENANCE TECHNOLOGY If you are looking for aftermarket options, some of the more popular part search sites include ILS, Partsbase, Stockmarket, AEA, and even Ebay can yield positive results. Many of the repair stations, with their constantly rotating inventories will post their excess inventories on their web sites. These can be easily found by just inputting your desired part number onto a search engine. However, since those inventories are constantly changing, it is always beneficial to make personal contact with the repair station and see if the part you have found is still available and in stock. AFTERMARKET AVIONICS OPTIONS There is a fundamental misunderstanding when it comes to "As Removed" parts and if you can install parts without an 8130-3 form. Many people believe that the existence of a 8130-3 is a license to install, however, this is not the case. The fact is that the 8130-3 document was and is intended to document any testing that was done on the component and any repairs completed to return a unit to service. The absence of an 8130-3 does not disqualify a component from being returned to service, but the lack of traceability can be a major issue. Shops that deal heavily in the aftermarket avionics market remove equipment everyday normally as part of installing newer technology equipment. This is exactly the methodology behind selling "As Removed" working equipment. This equipment is from working aircraft, which allows for full traceability to allow you to reinstall in your aircraft. All major suppliers will give you full traceability and their CoC with every component you purchase. This not only gives you working components, it saves you standard repair practices and OEM bench tests that may not enhance the functionality of your unit. For instance, any EFIS-CRT that you send to a bench level repair facility is required to meet a luminance test in accordance with its current repair manual. These CRTs will all have some phosphor burn by nature of the design of the component. This will cause the unit to fail a bench check and require a new CRT to be installed. The CRT may work just fine but has degraded over time. It is still functional and very usable. By purchasing aftermarket EFIS-CRTs, as an example, you can spend less than half the cost of exchange or repair. SPARES In addition to having a good resource for aftermarket avionics in an emergency, many flight departments, 135 operators, and legacy aircraft that fly over 400 hours a year keep a set of spare equipment for high fail items on hand to avoid extra downtime. Given the cost of re-booking or postponing a flight, it may make sense for you or your customer to have high fail items on hand like EFIS displays, weather radars, and more. AFTERMARKET AIRFRAME AND NON-OEM PARTS Although they may be more difficult to find, in addition to aftermarket avionics parts, there are several options for finding serviceable aftermarket airframe parts. In fact, there are a couple of organizations dedicated to decommissioning aircraft and recycling aircraft parts. The Aircraft Fleet Recycling Association (AFRA) holds a conference in conjunction with the Aviation Suppliers Association (ASA) where they seek to standardize the parts distribution network, educate suppliers, and cer- tify distributors. As we mentioned in the beginning of the article, there are numerous options for new, non-OEM parts. These can be something as simple as a bolt or a wire harness, or as complex as a set of reverse-engineered landing gear. Since there are so many options and dif- ferent types of parts available, having a good partner to work with to source these types of needs can save you and your customers both money and downtime and can increase your bottom line. FA A REGULATIONS AND ADS-B OPTIONS Another item to consider that is going to have a major effect on the industry is ADS-B OUT compliance. Any

Articles in this issue

Archives of this issue

view archives of Aircraft Maintenance Technology - APR 2017