Aircraft storage

August 12, 2010

747 Jumbo jets are being removed from storage by British Airways, Cathay Pacific, and United Airlines after a surge in bookings. These wide-bodied planes -747s- account for about 25% of the aircraft that have been pulled back into service from storage.

These aircraft have been in storage in the desert, protected from humidity and thus rust by the harsh dry conditions. Most of the aircraft in these types of storage facilities are there because it’s the end of the line. Most aircraft put into these ’boneyards’ and will be stripped of useful or reusable parts which can then be used for other planes that are still flying.

Depending on the demands of the military or for commercial purposes, an aircraft or a whole squadron of them may be pulled back from storage into active duty. The aircraft have to be reconditioned and tested so they are safe to fly. The reconditioning process includes putting in new avionics, electronics, safety measures, testing, and painting. Reconditioning of old aircraft is usually a cheaper way of getting more aircraft into service than buying new ones, and saves the USA billions of dollars annually.

Posted in: Storage World