Thu, Aug 25, 2011
Online Interface For Owners And Mechanics Focused On Specific
Aircraft Types
As part of an effort to increase safety in general aviation
aircraft, the National Institute for Aviation Research (NIAR) at
Wichita State University is making it possible for type clubs to
create their own service information sharing systems to catch and
correct service and maintenance issues before they begin to impact
safety. The schools says that means aviation type clubs will soon
have a convenient, user-friendly and cost-free method for sharing
service and maintenance information among their members.
Sample Screen Shot
The goal of the Service Information Sharing System program is to
increase the availability of service information to aircraft owners
and mechanics by assisting type clubs in collecting a more complete
history of service-related events; providing an opportunity for
type club members to share service history experiences; and raising
community awareness of precursor issues early to minimize their
impact on safety.
To kick off the program, NIAR has partnered with the American
Bonanza Society (ABS) to develop the system for ABS members. The
system will allow members to upload service information including
photos and related documents. Once uploaded, an ABS administrator
will review the information before approving it for sharing among
all registered ABS members. Members are then able to search the
database based on model, flight hours and systems.
The secure system allows the ABS administration to monitor
maintenance trends among its members and alert them to recurring or
critical issues. “The American Bonanza Society hopes its
members will use this resource to collectively identify and address
fleetwide maintenance trends before they become major airworthiness
issues,” said Tom Turner, executive director of the ABS Air
Safety Foundation. “Our hope is that by proactively
tracking maintenance trends we’ll be able to avoid costly
repairs and Airworthiness Directives that may be required if we
wait for issues to manifest themselves in airplane down-time or
accidents.”
Though the original pilot for this program is with ABS, the
service information sharing system will soon be available free of
charge to all aviation type clubs. It is designed to be
compatible with most existing type club websites – from
complex, established sites to the simplest “homemade”
site. Type clubs without an existing website will still have
the opportunity to participate in the service information sharing
system.
Information uploaded to these service information sharing
systems will be under the control of each individual type club.
Under a grant from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), NIAR
will develop databases for the individual type clubs. The databases
are intended to facilitate sharing of service information among
type clubs and their members.
The service information system was unveiled at the 2011
AirVenture Oshkosh by NIAR director of R&D Tom Aldag, Turner
and FAA representatives. “This free and secure resource can
help any aircraft type club better address emerging issues before
they potentially become fleet-grounding problems,” said
Turner.
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