Introduction
All commercial airline operators must
conform to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Part 121 Subpart L covering
the requirements for maintenance, preventive maintenance, and alterations in
order for the aircraft to stay airworthiness. The regulation stipulates maintenance
programs, maintenance organizations and structures, maintenance systems,
continuous analysis and surveillance, and maintenance recording requirements. The
regulations also specify that each operator/ applicant must have a maintenance
program adequate to perform the work, and a separate inspection program
adequate to perform the required inspections (Federal Aviation
Administration, 2016) .
A continuous airworthiness maintenance
program combines the maintenance and inspection functions used to fulfill the
total maintenance needs of the operator/ applicant. The basic requirements of a
continuous airworthiness maintenance program include the following:
1.
Inspection
2.
Scheduled maintenance
3.
Unscheduled maintenance
4.
Overhaul and repair
5.
Structural inspection
6.
Required inspection items (RII)
7.
Reliability program
Aircraft
Inspection during Transit
Most of the aircraft transit are
less than 2 hours. During this period, many activities such as food catering,
potable water and waste servicing, cargo unloading and loading, aircraft
refueling and aircraft walk-around check are to be carried out concurrently.
Aircraft walk around checks involved maintenance engineer and also by pilot
prior to aircraft departure. Maintenance engineer routinely inspects aircraft
structure for dents and damages by foreign object debris (FOB), and lightning
strike. According to Boeing, lightning is initiated at the airplane’s leading
edges, which ionize, creating a strike opportunity. Lightning currents travel
along the airplane and exit to the ground, forming a circuit with the airplane
between the cloud energy and the ground (Boeing, 2016) . In view of this,
inspection on aircraft upper fuselage is necessary during each aircraft transit
check.
Inspection
Challenges and Solutions
The height of aircraft varies.
Inspection of aircraft upper fuselage requires ground equipment such as
platform, scaffolding or scissor lift. They are bulky and also an obstruction
to other vehicles, which provide aircraft services mentioned above. Also, maintenance
engineer takes about 2 hours to perform visual inspection on upper fuselage as
moving of platform is necessary to accomplish inspection task. In order to
improve efficiency and productivity, it is recommended to accomplish inspection
task using UAV. The objective is to scan through aircraft upper fuselage using
camera installed on UAV. The video can be streamed and viewed by maintenance
engineer on ground in real time. Some of the advantages by deploying UAV are:
·
The inspection takes about 10 minutes
compared to 2 hours previously needed
·
The videos or pictures can be recorded and
analyzed when required
·
Cost saving in terms of man-hour and
expenses on ground equipment
Proposed
UAV- DJI Phantom 3 Professional
Flight Control
The flying of DJI Phantom 3
Professional is remarkably intuitive and easy. Critical flight phases such as
takeoff and landing can be easily controlled. The aircraft is responsive to
commands and automatically handle the most complex aspects of flight stably and
safely (DJI, 2016) .
GPS-Assisted Hover
Phantom 3 is equipped with Global
Positioning System (GPS) and Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS)
combine to make the Phantom 3 completely aware of its location and relation to
controller. It hovers more precisely, moves more accurately, and locks onto
satellites faster. With the new availability of GLONASS, a minimum of 36
satellites are available to controller around the world at any time. Moreover,
through the DJI Pilot app, controller can track its location on a live map, and
record takeoff point to allow aircraft to fly home with the tap of a finger (DJI, 2016) .
Vision Positioning System
It processes information from every
sensor and completes complex calculations in real time, giving controller a
worry-free flight experience (DJI, 2016) .
Automatic Flight Logs
Phantom 3 automatically logs and
remembers the details of every flight taken. Complete flight route, flight
time, flight distance, flight location, and cached versions of any photos and
videos took during flight are at fingertips for future reference. At the same
time, an advanced flight recorder constantly records data from all of Phantom
3’s internal mechanisms, which can be easily shared with the DJI support team for
Phantom 3 troubleshooting and maintenance (DJI, 2016) .
Intelligent Battery
Higher voltage, more energy, and
greater power combine to give improved flight experience. This upgraded
Intelligent Flight Battery has built-in sensors and bright LEDs that display
status and remaining power of battery in real time. Phantom 3 continuously
calculates its current distance and the amount of power needed to return, so
controller always know how long it takes to fly and time to recharge battery (DJI, 2016) .
Unmatched Propulsion
Each motor has the power and precision
needed for precision flight. Brushless motors work with lightning-fast ESCs to
allow fast, agile, and responsive aircraft movement. The powerful motors able
to speed up, quickly increase or decrease altitude, and stop immediately. DJI’s
powerful air braking mechanisms stop Phantom 3 instantly, making it hover in
place as soon as the control sticks are released. Aerodynamic self-tightening
propellers boost thrust and stay firmly in place (DJI, 2016) .
Epic Aerial Video
Phantom 3 is equipped with camera
which is compact and easy to use. It comes with 4K video at up to 30 frames per
second capturing and 12 megapixel photos that look crisper and much cleaner (DJI, 2016) .
Hazard
Analysis
Before deploying UAV for aircraft
inspection, through analysis on possible hazards during operational phase is
necessary. Operational phase encompasses many stages such as planning, staging,
launch, flight and recovery. Appropriate analysis tool within each stage will
allow for early identification and early resolution of safety issues (Barnhart,
Hottman, Marshall, & Shappee, 2016).
Preliminary
Hazard List
Preliminary Hazard List (PHL) is
used as a brainstorming tool to identify initial safety issue in the Phantom 3
operation. It is important for the list to be comprehensive with the
contributions from subject matter expert, who has in-depth understanding of the
operational stages. Preliminary hazard list & analysis for Phantom 3 is
shown.
|
PRELIMINARY
HAZARD LIST/ ANALYSIS (PHL/A)
|
|||||||
|
Date: 16 Jul 16
|
Prepared by: Ong Jin
Woei
|
Page no.1 of 1
|
|||||
|
Operational Stage:
|
Planning
|
Staging
|
Launch
|
Flight
|
Recovery
|
||
|
Track
|
Hazard
|
Probability
|
Severity
|
RL
|
Mitigating Action
|
RRL
|
Notes
|
|
1
|
Loss
of data link
|
Remote
|
Critical
|
10
|
Observe
flying distance
|
15
|
|
|
2
|
Low
Battery
|
Probable
|
Catastrophic
|
2
|
Standby
additional batteries
|
8
|
|
|
3
|
Bad
weather
|
Occasional
|
Critical
|
6
|
Observe
weather condition
|
10
|
|
|
4
|
Collision
with aircraft
|
Remote
|
Catastrophic
|
8
|
Pilot
to attend training
|
12
|
|
|
5
|
Distorted
video & image
|
Remote
|
Critical
|
10
|
Check
camera before flight
|
15
|
|
|
RL=
Risk Level
RRL=
Residual Risk Level
|
Probability,
Severity & Risk Level defined in Table 2.
|
||||||
Table 1: Preliminary
Hazard List/ Analysis (PHL/A)
Table
2:
Risk Assessment Matrix (Risk Level) retrieved from MIL-STD-882D
Operational
Hazard Review and Analysis (OHR&A)
OHR&A is used to identify and
evaluate hazards throughout the entire operational stages. This is a crucial
part of the ongoing and continuous evaluation of hazards and provides the
feedback necessary to determine that the mitigating actions employed have worked
as expected (Barnhart, Hottman, Marshall, & Shappee, 2016). Sample of Operational
Hazard Review and Analysis (OHR&A) for Phantom 3 is shown:
|
OPEARTIONAL
HAZARD REVIEW & ANALYSIS (OHR&A)
|
|||||||
|
Date: 16 Jul 16
|
Prepared by: Ong Jin
Woei
|
Page no.1 of 1
|
|||||
|
Operational Stage:
|
Planning
|
Staging
|
Launch
|
Flight
|
Recovery
|
||
|
Track
|
Action Review
|
Probability
|
Severity
|
RL
|
Mitigating Action
|
RRL
|
Notes
|
|
1
|
Loss
of data link
|
Remote
|
Critical
|
10
|
Observe
flying distance
|
15
|
|
|
2
|
Low
Battery
|
Probable
|
Catastrophic
|
2
|
Standby
additional batteries
|
8
|
|
|
3
|
Bad
weather
|
Occasional
|
Critical
|
6
|
Observe
weather
|
10
|
|
|
4
|
Collision
with aircraft
|
Remote
|
Catastrophic
|
8
|
Pilot
to attend training
|
12
|
|
|
5
|
Distorted
video & image
|
Remote
|
Critical
|
10
|
Check
camera before flight
|
15
|
|
|
6
|
Unable
to establish link with aircraft
|
Remote
|
Marginal
|
14
|
Update
software latest configuration
|
20
|
|
|
RL=
Risk Level
RRL=
Residual Risk Level
|
Probability,
Severity & Risk Level defined in Table 2.
|
||||||
Table
3:
Operational Hazard Review & Analysis (OHR&A)
Risk
Assessment
The purpose of risk assessment is to
provide a quick operation checklist prior to flight activity. It addresses the
risks, hazards and concerns related to the flight operation. Also, it serves as
decision-making aid to the pilot and operator. More importantly, it allows
safety and management of real-time information needed to carry out operation
safely (Barnhart, Hottman, Marshall, & Shappee, 2016). Sample of risk
assessment checklist for Phantom 3 is shown:
|
sUAS RISK ASSESSMENT
|
||||||
|
Embry-Riddle Worldwide Campus
|
||||||
|
UAS
Crew/ Station: _____/ _____ _____/
_____ _____/ _____ _____/ _____
|
||||||
|
Mission
Type
|
Support
(1)
|
Training
(2)
|
Payload
Check (3)
|
Experiment
(4)
|
|
|
|
Hardware
Changes
|
No
(1)
|
|
|
Yes
(4)
|
|
|
|
Software
Changes
|
No
(1)
|
|
|
Yes
(4)
|
|
|
|
Operation
Airspace
|
Special
Use (1)
|
Class
C (2)
|
Class
D (3)
|
Class
E, G (4)
|
|
|
|
Has
PIC flown this type of aircraft
|
Yes
(1)
|
|
|
No
(4)
|
|
|
|
Flight
Condition
|
Day
(1)
|
|
|
Night
(4)
|
|
|
|
Visibility
|
≥
10 km
(1)
|
6
– 9 km
(2)
|
3
– 5 km
(3)
|
<
3 km
(4)
|
|
|
|
Ceiling
in feet AGL
|
≥
10,000
(1)
|
3000
– 4900 (2)
|
1000
– 2000 (3)
|
<
1000 (4)
|
|
|
|
Surface
winds
|
|
0
– 10 KTS
(2)
|
11
– 15 KTS (3)
|
≥
16 KTS
(4)
|
|
|
|
Forecast
winds
|
|
0
– 10 KTS
(2)
|
11
– 15 KTS (3)
|
≥
16 KTS
(4)
|
|
|
|
Weather
Deteriorating
|
No
(1)
|
|
|
Yes
(4)
|
|
|
|
Mission
Altitude in feet AGL
|
|
<
1000
(2)
|
1000
– 2900 (3)
|
≥
3000
(4)
|
|
|
|
Are
crew members current
|
Yes
(1)
|
|
No
(3) : requires currency flight
|
|
|
|
|
Other
Range/ Airspace activity
|
No
(1)
|
|
|
Yes
(4)
|
|
|
|
Established
lost link procedures
|
Yes
(1)
|
|
|
No
(4)
Flight
to be cancelled
|
|
|
|
Observation
Type
|
Line
of sight & chase (1)
|
|
Chase
only (3)
|
Only
LOS
(4)
|
|
|
|
UAS
Grouping
|
Group
I
(1)
|
Group
II
(2)
|
Group
III
(3)
|
Group
IV
(4)
|
|
|
|
Risk
Level
|
||||||
|
|
20
– 30
Low
|
31
– 40
Medium
|
41
– 50
Serious
|
51
– 64
High
|
|
|
|
Aircraft
Number:
|
Aircraft
Type
|
|||||
|
Flight
Recorder by:
|
||||||
|
Date:
|
Time:
|
|||||
Table 4:
sUAS Risk Assessment
Conclusion
Be it manned or unmanned, safety is
paramount to any flight operations. In order to promote safety culture and
awareness in the company, strong adherence to risk assessment checklist prior
to flight is mandatory. It is the only way to mitigate human factors’ mishap,
and to prevent aircraft incidents and accidents. In order for the program to
succeed, participations from both management and operation crews are needed.
Management must enforce the use of checklist prior to flight and penalize those
operation crews, who intentionally refuse to conform. Also, it is necessary for
management to evaluate the effectiveness of check list from time to time, so
that it remains relevant and valid for operation crews.
Reference:
Boeing. (2016, July 16). Lightning
Strikes: Protection, Inspection, and Repair. Retrieved from
http://www.boeing.com/commercial/aeromagazine/articles/2012_q4/pdfs/AERO_2012q4_article4.pdf
DJI.
(2016, July 16). Phantom 3 Professional. Retrieved from
http://www.dji.com/product/phantom-3-pro
Federal
Aviation Administration. (2016, July 16). Overview — Title 14 of the Code of
Federal Regulations (14 CFR). Retrieved from
https://www.faa.gov/regulations_policies/handbooks_manuals/aircraft/amt_handbook/media/faa-8083-30_ch12.pdf
Marshall, D.
M., Barnhart, R. K., & Hottman, S. B. (Eds.). (2016). Introduction to
Unmanned Aircraft Systems. Baton Rouge, US: CRC Press. Retrieved from
http://www.ebrary.com.ezproxy.libproxy.db.erau.edu
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