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by DoofusOfDeath 1938 days ago
Yes!

When inspection frequency gets too low, airplanes fail, leading to more frequent inspections.

When inspection frequency gets too high, airlines and authorities decide to save money, leading to less frequent inspections.

So the inspection schedules (somewhat) satisfy Hook's Law, and thus we should expect wavelike oscillations.

[Edit: The system also requires momentum. That's provided by labor unions agreements, maintenance contracts, and the time needed to change regulations.]

Thanks, I'll be waiting for you at the pub.
2 comments
sandworm101 1938 days ago
>> When inspection frequency gets too high, airlines and authorities decide to save money, leading to less frequent inspections.

More often such aircraft are just retired. One defining difference between upstart airlines and "legacy" airlines is that the upstarts generally have new aircraft with lower inspection requirements. An interesting paper would address the inevitable evolution of new airlines as as their airframes age. When do they first try to transition to higher-profit services? When do they hit their first period of labor unrest? I theorize it is a function of aircraft age.

At least a few airlines don't ever buy aircraft. Instead they lease them with the intention of returning them moment they require more frequent inspections.

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nradov 1938 days ago
Upstart airlines frequently lease used aircraft because they're cheaper.
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rbanffy 1938 days ago
This whole business is so capital-intensive the decisions often follow non-obvious patterns. There are advantages in keeping a fleet uniform, even if a newer plane lease is cheaper than another model you already have a bunch of just because of the costs of training ground and air crews. Some leases may end up cheaper for you - and only for you - because of some tax break you got from one government that, for now, wasn't questioned by the WTO (and, since it's the manufacturer who'll pay the fines, it's not a concern).

It's... complicated. Very complicated.

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rbanffy 1938 days ago
We should write a paper on this. I know quite a few (dis)reputable journals that would readily take it.
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