What Happens to World Biggest Aircraft When Nobody Want to Buy Them Anymore

[Music] hello everyone and welcome back to the fluctus channel [Music] when an aircraft is no longer needed or wanted it may be retired to an open-air storage facility known as a Boneyard some of these like 20 airport in the Netherlands are less about storing disabled aircraft and more about providing a place to repair and overhaul them [Music] the capacity of European airports is very small it's essential that maintenance personnel has a place to train [Music] that's why 20 is often used by mechanics in flight schools to teach students about the plane repair another large European aircraft storage site can be found at tarbase Lourdes Pyrenees airport in France [Music] due to the same problem of overcrowding at airports tarbase has open designated parking areas for Airlines and private owners that lack space for their planes foreign France is also home of tarmac aerosave which provides a range of services for aircraft owners and operators including long-term storage preservation and maintenance [Music] tarmac aerosave also offers dismantling and Recycling services for end-of-life aircraft with a focus on environmentally sustainable practices as with the military planes back in the United States the steel aluminum wiring and other components in each aircraft all have an inherent value the process starts with the careful and deliberate dismantling of the aircraft's main systems including the engines flight systems and wings stripping is complete massive saws are used to begin cutting the plane's fuselage into manageable pieces for further recycling thank you since 2007 tarmac aerosave has fully recycled more than 300 planes since the pandemic the global supply chain has remained under immense strain unfortunately many organizations and experts predict that material and component shortages will continue for years this led to a huge demand market for used serviceable aircraft material also known as used aircraft parts or UAP [Music] this rapidly growing Market involves the buying and selling of aircraft Parts removed from retired or decommissioned aircraft [Music] several factors are driving the demand for UAP or UAP including the increasing age of the global commercial aircraft Fleet which has led to an increased need for replacement parts [Music] Additionally the high cost of new aircraft Parts combined with the economic pressure on Airlines and other aircraft operators has made UAP an attractive alternative this was a topic of discussion at the mro Europe 2021 this trade show which stands for a maintenance repair and overhaul brings together key players in the field including Airlines manufacturers suppliers and service providers the demand for you app is expected to grow even further in the coming years as the global commercial aircraft Fleet continues to age and Airlines and other operators seek to reduce their operating costs of course another smart way to cut the cost of manufacturing new planes is to avoid doing so entirely this is the Crux of Boeing's freighter conversion program which can effectively double the life of a passenger airplane this process starts by removing all the passenger components like seats and Stow bins after this Boeing Engineers will Design and install a cowl door on the side of the fuselage which allows for large cargo containers to be easily moved in and out often times the floor of the plane will need to be upgraded as well allowing for the installation of a stronger platform with rollers and other cargo friendly components [Music] from fighters to bombers nearly every retired or decommissioned aircraft will eventually make its way to a bone yard this is for several reasons for one some military aircraft may need to be brought out of retirement during times of war or other emergencies others may be slowly disassembled for parts over the years still others may be converted into other vehicles or recycled the largest aircraft boneyard in the world is the 309th Aerospace maintenance and regeneration group in Tucson Arizona [Music] in 2022 the a Marg stored at least 4 000 decommissioned or derelict aircraft across 2 600 acres [Music] whenever an aircraft is retired to the amarg or some other Boneyard it must first be flown from its last assigned station [Music] oh [Music] after the flight checks and superficial assessments the plane will be stripped down with most of the still viable but non-essential Parts taken for use on other aircraft [Music] in some cases a plane may be in such poor condition that it needs to be transported by truck [Music] however larger boneyards are almost always located near airstrips to help streamline the process [Music] upon arrival the aircraft is inspected and prepared for long-term storage foreign this may include removing any hazardous materials or weapons draining Fuel and other fluids and removing any components that could still be useful on other aircraft [Music] there are four types of aircraft stored in boneyards those designated long term will be kept intact for future use with no parts removed unless they have the potential to become damaged over time [Music] those designated parts reclamations are kept for spare parts as needed sometimes for decades flying hold aircraft are kept intact and receive regular service so that they remain in good working order lastly those labeled excess of DOD needs will be sold off typically in parts [Music] properly preserving an aircraft requires protecting it from the elements and internal corrosion to do this the plane will be parked in its designated row and covered with the protective coating to Shield them from the sun's harmful UV rays engines windows and intakes are then carefully sealed to keep out moisture rain and dust [Music] even animals like birds have been known to reside inside Boneyard aircraft where they can do hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of damage when dealing with thousands of planes many of which are large-scale bombers and transport aircraft managing a Boneyard can quickly become an overwhelming task [Music] some of the planes in these boneyards go all the way back to World War II Korea and Vietnam [Music] foreign [Music] of course aircraft must be carefully cataloged so that it can be found if and when or its parts are required by the Department of Defense [Music] those planes designated for Reclamation can sometimes require hundreds of hours of work with heavy equipment to disassemble effectively [Music] uncommon for visitors to see various aircraft from different eras in various stages of deconstruction [Music] scrapping is not only limited to the components of a given airplane but to the frame and structure as well the steel and aluminum inside each plane can sometimes add up to thousands of pounds all of which are ripe for recycling into new airplane parts screws Fasteners and bolts also have value on the secondary Market as do the beams and panels they hold into place foreign using screwdrivers saws and hammers teams of Scrappers will spend hours a day taking apart a single section of aircraft once they accomplish their goal for the day forklifts and trucks will be called in to haul the Pieces away despite the million of pounds of scrap metal and countless valuable components they store boneyards are also great places to train crash recovery Crews whenever a plane crashes or is otherwise disabled these crews are tasked with recovering all parts of the aircraft without causing further damage [Music] since the out of service aircraft in the Boneyard is near perfect simulations for crashed planes they allow for highly realistic training scenarios indeed a single plane will give these Crews a chance to practice field lifting using airbags debugging a stuck plane setting up recovery sling systems and collecting hazardous wreckage just like they would in a real crash situation those aircraft that do not end up parked in the desert converted into Freighters or recycled for scrap will often end up in museums [Music] there are hundreds of museums like this spread all around the world and each works hard to purchase planes of historical significance [Music] in the case of the Memphis Bell restoration the crew has got all the major areas painted nose art will be uh they'll start that in the next week or two with the addition of the control surfaces we have the last major assemblies that are going on the aircraft it's really wonderful because for many years we saw the bell and it was unpainted it had been stripped uh the original paint was uh gone a long time ago was repainted in the 80s so the paint was stripped and it looked like another B-17 but with the paint being added and these major assemblies being put on it really is looking like the Memphis belt however given the age and condition of some of these planes many will need to undergo extensive repair and restoration services [Music] luckily there are men and women who take great pride in their restoration abilities often producing completely accurate results that people can enjoy for years to come [Music] that's the end of this video I hope you enjoyed it make sure to subscribe to this channel so you don't miss any of our new content see you next time [Music]

Channel: Fluctus

Views: 965,072

Keywords: boneyard, plane boneyard, 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group, parts reclamation, aircraft refitting, aircraft demolition, aircraft scrapping, plane recycling, museum planes, aircraft museum, military aircraft museum, aircraft restoration

Id: Bg001a50ULg

Length: 15min 3sec (903 seconds)

Published: Sun Apr 23 2023