747hogg From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Posted (6 years 3 months 3 weeks 5 days 22 hours ago) and read 6543 times:
I just saw the story on TV about the AA maintenance procedure in OK. Simply brilliant! My congratulations to the people who came up with this new process, and it was also good to see the program and it's quality has foreign airlines flying there MD-80's here to the states for work.
XJRamper From United States of America, joined Dec 2003, 2352 posts, RR: 52 Reply 1, posted (6 years 3 months 3 weeks 5 days 22 hours ago) and read 6542 times:
BigGSFO From United States of America, joined Jun 2005, 2762 posts, RR: 7 Reply 2, posted (6 years 3 months 3 weeks 5 days 22 hours ago) and read 6479 times:
747hogg From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 3, posted (6 years 3 months 3 weeks 5 days 19 hours ago) and read 6222 times:
It is a new and apparently revolutionary way to do D checks on the MD-80, Fast and very cost saving. The Jet is put in a hanger, or in many hangers all at the same time. ( 30 Jets-30 hangers) and specially trained "gangs" (micro fine skilled crews) move from hanger to hanger doing the specific chore they have been trained to do. Because one area and one area only is what each crew is assigned, the job becomes simple to master and gets done in record time. 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. In two hours one MD-80 had been stripped of the entire interior, all the way down to the skin! While the entire cockpit had been removed by another team. One guy has the job of doing nothing but cleaning gum from seat tracks. All very job specific and co ordinated. As soon as one team is done and jumps to the next hanger to do it all over again, the next phase of the check gets underway with a different team, on and on.... you have to see the story to understand, and I'm sure a fellow A.netter will have it and post it. It's so cost effective Latin airlines, and AirTran are using AA for the MD-80 D checks. Looks like these people could do D checks blind folded! and the inventory of rotobles looks like the Boeing factory.
Petertenthije From Netherlands, joined Jul 2001, 3239 posts, RR: 13 Reply 4, posted (6 years 3 months 3 weeks 5 days 19 hours ago) and read 6166 times:
So let me get this straight. They been to the Ford museum, seen the vid reels from yesteryear and decided to modify the model T production line to airplanes? Not that revolutionay when you think about it, is it? Hard to understand it was not done at airlines before. But if it saves the airline money, good for them! Would hate to be the guy cleaning gum the rest of my career though.
KELPkid From United States of America, joined Nov 2005, 5962 posts, RR: 4 Reply 5, posted (6 years 3 months 3 weeks 5 days 18 hours ago) and read 6085 times:
Considering:
AA has ~300 MD-80's,
Would approximately 10% of the fleet need a D-check (or be close to needing one ) in order to realize the economies of scale using this method? I wonder if they're contracting this out to other MD-80 operators...
I know that AA's MX ops are incredibly resourceful, they have fabricated their own F100 replacement parts and even the "screwdriver" MD-80 tailcone (more economical to make it themselves than to buy it from Boeing!).
Celebrating the birth of KELPkidJR on August 5, 2009 :-)
Spoke2Spoke From United States of America, joined Oct 2004, 190 posts, RR: 0 Reply 6, posted (6 years 3 months 3 weeks 5 days 18 hours ago) and read 5993 times:
Nice innovation AA. It alwasys seems to me that this business is short on innovation, so I love hearing about stories like this. Do you think the Tulsa mechanics switch 'teams' on occasion, to keep from getting bored?
I really like seeing other countries outsourcing maintenance to us! Here's an example of innovation allowing us to compete in the global economy.
...carelessness and overconfidence are usually far more dangerous than deliberately accepted risks. - Wilbur Wright
DSMflyer From United States of America, joined Jan 2006, 401 posts, RR: 0 Reply 7, posted (6 years 3 months 3 weeks 5 days 18 hours ago) and read 5938 times:
Quoting Petertenthije (Reply 4): They been to the Ford museum, seen the vid reels from yesteryear and decided to modify the model T production line to airplanes? Not that revolutionay when you think about it, is it?
That's just what I was thinking. Why did it take this long for that idea to be applied to airlines?
KELPkid From United States of America, joined Nov 2005, 5962 posts, RR: 4 Reply 8, posted (6 years 3 months 3 weeks 5 days 18 hours ago) and read 5891 times:
Quoting DSMflyer (Reply 7): That's just what I was thinking. Why did it take this long for that idea to be applied to airlines?
See response #5 above...as I asserted, it must be extraordinarily large fleets before the economies of scale would be there. Airplanes are still, by and large, hand made machines constructed and maintained by craftsmen (although the 787 and Raytheon Premier I are slowly changing this...)
Celebrating the birth of KELPkidJR on August 5, 2009 :-)
N1120A From United States of America, joined Dec 2003, 25869 posts, RR: 79 Reply 9, posted (6 years 3 months 3 weeks 5 days 17 hours ago) and read 5759 times:
Quoting KELPkid (Reply 5): Would approximately 10% of the fleet need a D-check (or be close to needing one ) in order to realize the economies of scale using this method?
You don't necessarily need as large a fleet as you think. Contracting to other carriers as well as having mechanics trained on more than one type can more than make the EOS to make that work.
Quoting KELPkid (Reply 5): I wonder if they're contracting this out to other MD-80 operators...
The same documentary showed that they do just that.
Quoting KELPkid (Reply 5): the "screwdriver" MD-80 tailcone (more economical to make it themselves than to buy it from Boeing!).
They also sell them to other airlines.
Mangeons les French fries, mais surtout pratiquons avec fierte le French kiss
Cactus739 From United States of America, joined Jan 2004, 2381 posts, RR: 33 Reply 11, posted (6 years 3 months 3 weeks 5 days 13 hours ago) and read 5336 times:
Quoting 747hogg (Reply 10): Name of the show was a day in the world of American Airlines..
Ken777 From United States of America, joined Mar 2004, 7525 posts, RR: 5 Reply 13, posted (6 years 3 months 3 weeks 5 days 11 hours ago) and read 5030 times:
It's an interesting concept and AA probably has the fleet and contract work to keep it going.
The most important factor, however, is the fact that both the unions and management in TUL understand that they have to work together in order to keep the TUL Maintenance Base going full speed efficiently - and maximizing the employment levels.
Congrats on their successes to date and best wishes for more to come!
Zudnic From United States of America, joined Oct 2005, 61 posts, RR: 0 Reply 14, posted (6 years 3 months 3 weeks 5 days 10 hours ago) and read 4117 times:
Quoting DSMflyer (Reply 7): That's just what I was thinking. Why did it take this long for that idea to be applied to airlines?
Well, for starters a lot of airlines haven't exactly been on the cutting edge of innovation for cost-saving measures over the years. The cost-saving measures have really only kicked in during the LCC era.
I am guessing that this method took root because AA has the big facility at TUL (enough physical space), that they have enough quantity of the same airplane to make it worthwhile (as KELPkid said), they have the union support, and they see it as a revenue center because they can do the checks for other airlines.
Electech6299 From United States of America, joined Aug 2005, 616 posts, RR: 3 Reply 15, posted (6 years 3 months 3 weeks 5 days 10 hours ago) and read 4003 times:
Quoting 747hogg (Reply 3): One guy has the job of doing nothing but cleaning gum from seat tracks.
Quoting Petertenthije (Reply 4): Would hate to be the guy cleaning gum the rest of my career though.
Yep, I now realize what my own personal aviation hell would be...
good for AA. Remind me never to move within 100 miles of Tulsa, lest I be drawn into that black hole of efficiency...
Send not to know for whom the bell tolls...it tolls for thee
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From , joined Dec 1969, posts, 
From Netherlands, joined Jul 2001, 3239 posts, 
) in order to realize the economies of scale using this method? I wonder if they're contracting this out to other MD-80 operators...
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