Airplane Heavy Maintenance | Mega Pit Stops | Episode 1 | Free Documentary

[Music] what does it take to cut a ship into two halves to strip down and reassemble a giant plane to overhaul the world's longest high-speed train it takes hundreds of professionals expertise precision and courage it's never been done before pushing everyone to the limit it is surely a challenging job now on mega pit stops [Music] every six years at the very least every plane has to clear its schedule for an important job it's a major inspection known as an il check how much work does this involve 25,000 man-hours it's one of the most complicated pit stops in the world Lufthansa Technik Malta is an expert in aircraft maintenance day one of a huge new project the Airbus a330 300 official named kilo Romeo it's over 63 meters long and almost 17 metres tall kela Romeo is used for medium to long haul routes the Airbus's wingspan a good 60 metres and it travels at a maximum speed of 875 kilometres per hour the complete overhaul takes 40 days during this time a team will dismantle the entire cabin which includes the seats kitchens toilets wall panels and floors no matter how small the component the inspection is thorough clean check and repair or replace once everything is outside the team checks the airplane structure for damage right down to the last screw inside and out at the same time engineers perform any repairs needed on the wings landing flaps and engines Lufthansa Technik multi checks the safety of fleets from several different airlines at the start of any new inspection project manager Daryl Heyman can never be sure what kinds of problems he'll discover and whether he will manage to stay on schedule once we have everything stripped down we click into an inspection phase and from the inspection phase we will know exactly what we're looking at it is surely a challenging job the first big challenge is getting the gigantic aircraft into the hangar engineer Patrick McAuliffe takes command the blue work platforms in the hangar are carefully adjusted to kylo romeo's dimensions the 200 million euro jet has to park right in the middle of them routine for the 29 year old engineer even so he needs every spare pair of hands in the hangar you will need to be like you have like 10,000 eyes on each pass if it was a slight crack it cost thousands of dollars stay one left one denied everything it's clear okay good so we'll be inside the few minutes step 1 despite different nationalities and noise from the turbines communication has to be as simple and clear as possible Patrick's instructions are standard marshaling signs just like parking a car reverse parking a plane relies on turning the wheel at precisely the right time the entrance to the hangar is a critical point from here on flagmen Patrick only has minimal tolerance on either side only of Kela Romeo stays on the yellow line in the middle will it fit into the hangar vericose less than half a meter you know so it gets verticals Patrick's spots a problem kilo Romeo is moving at a slight angle next to the guiding line a little bit misaligned means to be a little bit to delight the pitstop is on a very tight schedule in just 40 days the Airbus has to be ready for safe takeoff or so says the flight plan any delay here in the hangar means potential cancellations for the airline and its passengers everything is according to plan so hopefully we'll continue and finalize the stowing precision the wings are approaching the platforms [Music] they did it the plane is in position as it is black so on good job boys oh yeah they had been clear nothing had gone wrong so everything was perfect today also another job done so the first successful my son of the sleigh over exactly fascinating they hang getting a complete overhaul in 40 days this requires five teams cabin engines cargo hold electronics and structures so good morning everyone we're day one of 40 for the next incoming project on killer Romeo the clock is ticking to achieve the 40 days we need to start now so let's go and let's do the job and make it in time the only way to stick to the schedule is for all departments to work at the same time the engines team starts by removing the turbines to do this Patrick has to prop and lift the aircraft this allows the lift truck to fit underneath the turbines to lift the plane he positions three jacks like the ones you find in a car workshop but much much bigger he places one at the nose of the Airbus and two under the wings we check that they and also letting air jackets everything it's okay they lock nuts oil tight so if there is any movement the knot will be in place Kevin we start lifting their nose 0.3 Frankle patrick starts by lifting the aircraft's nose then the team slides the jacks under the wings with aligning the mainland incajac that goes inside the jacking adapter kilo Romeo weighs 170 tons if the checks aren't positioned correctly they'll slip and pierce through the wings Alberto Andrea and do we have a DN on the nose joke that they will be need to be synchronized because right now the aircraft is stable at 0 degrees and we're gonna live to all the three jacks together Alberto Andrea mace up both operators have to lift the wings so they remain exactly parallel if one side rice is quicker than the other the plane will tip over the massive lifting platform elevates kilo romeo 7.5 meters up from the ground it's 170 tons are balanced perfectly between the three points [Music] now the live truck can fit under the engine a lot of job had been done and a lot of more pending work to be done later on on this check 10,000 individual job cards 25,000 man-hours project manager Darrell has already performed general overhauls in over 100 different planes and yet every plane brings new challenges so in the next couple of days we'll be seeing a different aircraft so yes it will be interesting for one to see from when the aircraft arrives into our facility into the hangar how the aesthetic of the maintenance event changes to stick to the planes delivery deadlines Darryl has to keep his eye on all five teams at the same time both outside and inside the plane James she'd is in charge of team cabin his job completely dismantled the interior inspected for faults and then place everything back where it belongs carpet guys so upholstery we start removing all all carpet how much time do you need to at least two hours should be finished the carpet so then we need or porco flight scenario seven sidewalls and a dose to be removed today jeans coordinates 15 tradesmen and engineers all of them work in sync which is why they truly depend on each other a single delay and the entire pit stop schedule would fall behind everything is happening that at the same time I have to go around the cabin all the time to say that everything is going smoothly and no problems are being held from an area to be removed that's why it's a little bit complicated before things can progress the seats have to be removed that is Jason shakuni's job the more comfortable the seat the heavier and bulkier it is a business-class seat takes around six times longer to remove than an economy seat you have this this here just have to go move it back more okay like that mainly this is the back shell all power supplies are here this will be connected to the seat where for every seat they have actuators motors mainly they have five every every motor for each movement of the seat around 750,000 passengers have travelled the world on these seats the main thing they leave behind dirt I'm always dreaming to find maybe a diamond you know jason has just three days to remove the 238 seats his seat shop is one of 13 workshops inside the hangar each department performs all their own repairs on-site which saves an incredible amount of time lufthansa technik doesn't just look after looked onto aircraft airlines from all over the world bring their planes here for a general overhaul for Jason this means ever-changing kinds of seats along with their various defects you know every seat is that chick's opposite so every part of the seat has a number if you need to if you have something broken you have to check on one of us check that part number then you will order and the replace any parts that are damaged an essential part of every check is a thorough safety assessment of the seats and belts Jason only replaces the upholstery where necessary inside the hangar the teams continue dismantling Keela Romeo 70 people work simultaneously on every part of the plane the structures teams inspecting the Airbus's steel frame every single bit of corrosion must be identified Patrick and his team are still removing the turbines an assessment of the hoisting under the engines is a mandatory part of every il check we need to work simultaneously all together everyone will be take his shame looks and everyone works together to access the engine hoisting Patrick's team must first remove the turbines for chain hooks of the mod using synchronized levering movements they slowly lure the engine once complete the engineers can finally access the hoisting this is what holds the engine to the wing it has to be checked every six years this is the forward employed mount this big attachment as you see it will get attached later on to the fan flame and also on the other side still the same the mechanics use leverage to lift the truck and it struts the lift rack uses the same principle as a forklift once the truck has reached the right height Patrick detaches the engine from the wing [Music] Oh finished the struts are now at the same height as the turbines the team detaches the connection to the wing now the lift truck is holding the full weight of the engine six tonnes one of the planes heaviest components success for Patrick so another engine had been removed another job is done everything went pretty well everything is okay another test for the mega pit stop checking the outer shell for damage caused by bad weather even the tiniest bit of damage from hail or lightning can pose a safety threat at the same time under the plane mechanics are bleeding the fuel tank so they can inspect it from the inside later on in the cabin things are still being dismantled project manager Darrell is supervising over 500 individual job cards just for the interior working in maintenance of maintenance it is something which keeps you always on the edge always concentrated you need to be always concentrated and it's it's a nice and interesting job that makes you feel proud if you're working in Darrell and his team makes sure that passengers can feel safe that is always the number one priority even more important than costs or the pit stop schedule after seven hundred fifty thousand passengers a thorough clean as well and truly in ordering the seats have all been removed and are in the workshop the cabin team is now removing all the carpets flooring and cladding from inside the plane only now can team boss James start concentrating on the trickiest part of the disassembly process the equipment in the middle in other words the kitchen and toilets are blocking the workers path it's mainly the items that are repairable is the lamination here which you can see several damages which can be repaired and new illumination will be installed the term monuments refers to components that are assembled as a group this does not split so it's very heavy to get it out so we have to be exactly with the door level and you need at least four to five guys process is really heavy so first lift a bit off and go backwards well stop there so now we have to tilt it forward slowly slowly get it down from the front okay so let's go straight back to tilt tilt up yes right lower it lower it a bit it's okay alright so go forward lower it a bit downward so I have to go straight like this small go straight straight the part is stuck which means it is blocking the door for other workers James needs a speedy solution otherwise they'll fall off schedule the team's adapt their workflow on a daily basis every delay is carefully logged [Music] each morning or a day before normally we showed you what work needs to be done and every job has its job card number and tasks related to it each page describes one of the 10,000 job cards in total from a simple cleaning job to a repair that affects the plane safety like the inspection of the Incheon hoisting for instance it attaches the turbine to the wing any problem could spell catastrophic consequences Andre is replacing a very specific berry this is also a mandatory process in the il jack it takes all the loads literally a transfer is lost through the pylon and gin pylon and win structure and this is the job of this bearing we use this tool when the bearing is literally stuck it's so hard there's so much torque in it you can you will never loosen it Andre has to drill into the bearings mount to replace it [Music] the material is so strong that the bits wear out what's quite easily the connection is incredibly strong the ring is mounted to the wing the entire engines six tonne weight will later hang off this single tiny component this connection must never break no matter how strong the wind turbulence or vibrations finally yeah this little thing supposed holds everything together keeps engines flying yeah it's a bastard meanwhile on top of the wing the cabin team still has a problem with one of the monuments [Music] cabin boss James and his team have dismantled aircraft from all over the world when you're dealing with so many different components it's impossible to know every detail take these plastic bumpers for instance [Music] sometimes you forget forget about these things it's a small item that sometimes the manual does not tell you to remove that bumper but to get out from the door it's really exact exact height so just few millimeters finally the match will fit through the door and is now on its way for repairs in the neighboring shop the team has nearly finished dismantling the cabin next step finding the defects it's getting a bit exhausting for everyone um but this is the face when you need to be fully concentrated because any mistake at this stage can jeopardize the DAT dod that's the planned date of delivery for the repaired plane in 33 days so far the team has been right on schedule the cabin is empty the structures team now inspects the ceiling walls and floor for damage biggest risk in the interior moisture and the resulting threat of corrosion outside the team is facing their most challenging dismantling task one of the flat track bearings is faulty this calls for some heavy machinery after all the flap alone is over five metres long and weighs 300 kilograms engineer Andre Spiteri is responsible for this job the hardest part is not to take it out is to make sure we keep it clear away from the aircraft and not to damage not to damage or not to hurt anyone these huge components influence the airflow to make the plane ascent descent or maintain its course during takeoff the flaps boost lift for landing they increase air resistance during the inspection they demand Andre and his team's full attention right the crane has been calibrated precisely to the weight of the flap what we're doing now is we're adjusting the hoist so we can have it centered so when we actually remove and take the weight of the flap we don't have any surprises like the all the weight goes in the aircraft or moves suddenly out and throws us out of the docking I think it's enough let's tie it over the center of gravity must be exactly in the middle otherwise the landing flap could suddenly tip over [Music] Oh should be good thank you the cables are tied Andre releases the flat from the wing slowly just do it like that oh it's moving okay okay it's coming up it's coming go ahead oh now the flap is held only by the grain a dangerous balancing act we need to push up and Johnny pull it the biggest risk that the flap could hit the fuselage and cause millions worth of damage nope nope nope oh oh alright be careful of the of the docking at the back suddenly the giant part threatens to slip while some members of the team focus on the big parts during this mega pitstop others take care of the tiny details Shia Rekha Lea from the structures team checks everything that holds the Airbus together for example thousands of screws this is just one of the many jobs that are invisible to passengers but essential to their safety during a flight [Music] that responsibility is big because I just think if my family is reading that clean I have to make sure that it's safe the screws are the smallest components in the aircraft but they are also the most common it is cheaper to clean and repair each individual screw than it is to just replace them all Shaya also repairs the metallic components in the cabin and is one of only five women working in the entire hangar what I like about my job is that I am being challenged every being I am challenged to do my best and push my limit shires job to repair Kela romeo shell during a flight it's what protects passengers from temperatures of minus 50 degrees outside the plane shia has been fascinated by flying since she was a child as a woman working in a male-dominated environment she also sees herself as something about playing here don't be afraid to get your hands dirty don't be afraid to be one of the boys and don't be afraid to like conquer the world's the men's world because if they can do it why can't we outside the cabin andres team is still struggling with the 300 kilo landing flap look chip up go the workers have to lift the flap up and pull it away from the plane at the same time what and over the rope watch the harnesses where's the harnesses they've done it this final component marks the end of the dismantling phase luckily it's out happily out yeah job done for today day 19 of the mega pitstop in Malta the five departments of cabin engines cargo hold electronics and structures work at different paces the engines team is completing its repairs the turbines have been checked repaired and signed off the cabin team has removed and numbered all of the parts the next step start repairs in the seat shop for 238 seats this means 15 days of work the seat rows are set up exactly as they are in the cabin every seat has its assigned place as the customer expects the plane to be essentially the same as before the pit stop except that it's been overhauled Jason starts by taking inventory we will check first of all the cushions that are in good condition or if any are damaged or worn we will need to replace then we will start checking functional of the seat an assessment of the basic frame and seat belts are mandatory jobs for this check interval what's more the airline has opted to have the seats fully reconditioned to make sure its passengers are comfortable what's the condition of the questions questions some have some damages their world and regarding the bottom covers we've got about sixty stayin the team cleans and repairs anything worth saving for larger scale damage Jason orders specific spare parts when dealing with so many different airlines keeping every spare part in stock for every aircraft model is impossible the new landing flap has arrived at the hangar unfortunately it's the wrong color for the airline solution paint it over this means a delay to the schedule it puts more pressure on us to deliver the actual my stolen time so we delayed it maybe like two days the installation since it was originally planned a two-day delay it's a major setback for the hanger crew after all the next flight has already been scheduled for kilo Romeo the shop team tries to win back some of the time lost 102 specialists polished the components to return their original shine they do this for every part that passengers come into contact with including the wall panels windows ceiling lights and toilets if properly maintained this Airbus is able to complete over 80 thousand flight hours [Music] there's just a week to go before the plane is delivered to the airline while the cabin team is well underway with repairs the hangar crew is still looking for false we cook in to the inspection phase where all inspections are carried out throughout the aircraft and any defects are identified parts ordered and items need to be rectified basically current status the engines are still in very good condition after six years however there is still one dangerous job left to do cleaning and checking the fuel tank a job that risks suffocation or explosion and the electrician still need to check mile upon mile of cabling the fuel tanks are located in the wings and at the bottom of the fuselage if they contain any foreign bodies these could rub against the tank and cause corrosion and corrosion could cause fuel loss cleaning is therefore a hugely important job but unfortunately not a particularly safe one this is a vacuum the vacuum pump that works with air because obviously you cannot work with electricity and the fuel tank melih so basically I'm I'm going in to do an inspection alright so let's do this the area that Ruben is climbing into is normally filled to the top with fuel that's over 200,000 litres fumes darkness cramped conditions you have to be a special person to take on this kind of job it's not fair I'm planning to get fat you know because it's not fair away it's always me you know it's not nice being the skinny guy inside the engines you have to get fit and get old yeah so I have to inspect everything every corner every rivet every high lock everything correct assembly because the fuel tank is quite critical so I have to make sure it's as clean as possible Chris yes I'm moving over to DNR tank can you please hand me the vacuum please coming Reuben is also on the lookout for cracks and leaks it doesn't take long for such defects to expand the mechanic has to inspect a total of six fuel tanks the smallest of which is just 30 centimeters tall one thing Rueben always has with him on board a strange feeling in the stomach I find it quite scary to be honest because yeah something happens to be that there are fumes he could trip they could slip and then obviously he will need help with his by himself no one can help him but if there's a colleague outside he can either call for help or go will not help him the worst thing to do is to actually panic oh man is everything okay yep everything good and then suddenly Reuben finds a problem these little tiny metal shavings could cause a problem everywhere in the aircraft because they could be a potential for corrosion and we don't want corrosion America Reuben soaks up the splitters with his vacuum pump in total he needs two days for inspecting and cleaning all of the tanks completely in the dark at the same time one story up cabin boss James is right on schedule his team has finished checking the interior [Music] now it's time for everything to go back in [Music] there's just one team still working on the inspection phase the electrics team which has to check 400 kilometers of cable they all come together in the avionics Bay kilo romeo's Control Center it is located directly under the pilot's seat this is where it all comes together entertainment systems smoke detectors autopilot declan DeYoung checks each and every connection a job that requires total concentration you have to be alert all the time you have to watch what you're doing so he don't trip and bump your head or fall break anything that clown performs the first of three checks two more electricians will then come along behind this is because job cards directly related to passenger safety are always checked by more than one expert it's basically taking all the wires for damages for burning marks shaving and that kind of stuff so like this wires see it's a bit loose all the way so first we do is clean with the brush and some alcohol make it clean loose wires vibrate during the flight and could generate friction a safety risk that shouldn't be underestimated [Music] what could happen say if it was like okay we're broken or damaged and connect like sparks - given in a cup with an indication that this fault somewhere and maybe into a whiskey scenario that could spark and go smoke a fire worst case scenario the last few days of the mega pit stop Darryl's team now has to put the plane back together again as quickly as possible the final phase my stones all on track and we've got three seven four defects still open you're doing a brilliant job keep focused come on let's do it okay let's go back at Jason's seat shop the new seats have arrived [Music] can you seeds smells good there it's like when you buy a new car Jason is installing 16 brand new seats the rest have been reconditioned the seating is arranged right down to the last centimeter the issue here is one that passengers take very seriously legroom the rows can't be too close together nor can they be too far apart if just one row is in the wrong place this can trigger a chain reaction it could end up that a whole row of seats doesn't fit into the plane anymore you have to move everything go seeds or cables hopefully it doesn't happen there's another problem the paddling is still missing in some areas for Jason and his seats that means stop project manager Darrell is tense during the installation phase in particular it is essential to make sure all teams are perfectly in sync otherwise his team may miss the upcoming deadline although it's a bit weird teams are a bit frustrated to a certain extent that we could be in a better situation than we currently are everything is happening at once in the cabin the paneling is finished the seats are going in and the bulky monuments have to go back into so the guys oh you have to go forward Hayes well what they already even the smallest scratch means remove the element again repair the defect then reinstall [Music] now it's time to see whether James can deliver on time to reach the target you need to be concentrated fully on the project sometimes if you make a wrong decision like you install something before another one you might end up removing it a huge puzzle made up of millions and millions of pieces every piece has been checked for safety and repaired from the tiniest screw right through to the skin slowly but surely kilo Romeo gets its outer shell back shai array and the structures team are making up for lost time that means to me I did the job fine yeah it's a precision landing for head engineer Andre to it's like your house you know you're always here coming to the work making sure it's safe to fly putting everything in place like a puzzle and at the end it's just as satisfying as to see it go last problem area to address the cabin but things have finally started moving here to the monuments and seats are all back in position after all that work you know remove inspections rectifications on seat bring them I guess new again [Music] day 39 kilo Romeo looks brand-new both outside and inside project manager Darrell has done it and one day ahead of schedule the Airlines inspectors will perform one last check of the entire aircraft before the Airbus a330 can take a test flight the plane can't start transporting passengers again until these two steps are out of the way ten thousand job cards 25,000 man-hours kilo Romeo is back and ready to start safely transporting thousands of passengers to their destinations [Music] very exhaustive very very exhausted but again this is the most rewarding day when we see the project coming to an end and a satisfied customer which is important and most importantly I will maintain the aircraft with a high level of quality for the safety of our passengers for Daryl the next project is already waiting in the wings he and his 170 person team are the unsung heroes of aviation the crew here in Malta makes sure that air travel remains the safest mode of transportation [Music] [Music] you

Channel: Free Documentary

Views: 4,554,399

Keywords: Free Documentary, Documentaries, Full documentary, HD documentary, BBC documentary, documentary - topic, documentary (tv genre), mega pitstops, mega pit stops, airplane documentary, airplane maintenance, engineering, engineering documentary, a330-300, lufthansa documentary, Aeronautical Engineering, Aeronautical Engineering documentary, greatest pit stop, flight safety, Aviation safety, air safety

Id: jA2Gp48UmsE

Length: 48min 27sec (2907 seconds)

Published: Fri Oct 18 2019