March-April_2022 - 38

F O R T H E R EC O R D
Blockchain and Aircraft
Maintenance
From its humble beginnings with Bitcoin and digital currencies used by banks,
investment companies and cryptocurrency dealers; blockchain is rapidly becoming
a reality in many industries, which should include aviation.
Thanks to the independent verification processes
By Larry Hinebaugh
Larry Hinebaugh
is the executive
director of the nonprofit
company
The Foundation for
Business Aircraft
Records Excellence. He
is a 40-year veteran of
the business aviation
industry.
that take place by members on a blockchain network,
blockchain is impervious to hackers who can only
reach a single point in the chain and still not affect
the entire network. This, of course, offers a tremendous
level of security. And this is where aviation can
really benefit.
There are two easily discernible ways the aircraft
maintenance industry could utilize blockchain:
* With replacement parts or loaner components
installed on an aircraft.
* In the aircraft's maintenance planning process.
Parts and Loaner Components
In addition to the 8130 Airworthiness Certificate
required to accompany a part, imagine an A&P technician
being able to see the complete on/off cycle and
maintenance/repair history of a part before installing
this part on the aircraft. The operator of the aircraft
receiving the part would become knowledgeable of
the history of the part. The operator would have a
much better understanding of why the part had been
replaced by other operators on previous aircraft even
to the point of having access to information of the
repair accomplished by the vendor issuing the 8130.
Consider the following scenario: An engine start
valve is removed from N345 because it won't open to
start the aircraft's engine when it's sitting at highaltitude
airports. The engine start valve is sent back
to the manufacturer's repair facility who " bench tests "
the valve but can't find anything wrong with it. The
repair facility then returns the valve to service as no
fault found. Another operator orders a start valve to
put on their plane N678, so the repair facility sends
them this valve ... now returned to service and sitting
on the shelf ready for its next mission.
The aircraft operates without issue, until one day
it attempts a start in Mexico City. And guess what?
The engine start valve doesn't open.
I know many A&P technicians who will tell you
that this type of thing happens often in business
aviation. But if the valve had been a part of a blockchain
of history hosted by the OEM or repair facility,
the maintenance people for N678 would have been
able to see that the part had been removed from N345
due to a " will not start engine at high altitude airport "
issue. This would have alerted them to a potential
problem that could become a serious issue, and to
be prepared. At the very least, the operator might
not have been caught completely unaware if the " no
start " issue happened to them. Maybe they might
have even decided to carry an extra valve " just in
case " and wouldn't be in such as awkward position
when the Start Valve Doesn't Open issue surfaced
during an otherwise routine trip.
The Aircraft's Maintenance
Planning Process
Managing Maintenance Tracking Data: In another
scenario, an operator inputs an aircraft into a local
MRO for a maintenance event. Blockchain could be
used to sync each task completed on the aircraft with
the MRO work order and the associated maintenance
tracking company's data. No longer would maintenance
tracking data be distinct and sometimes different
than from the logbook data completed by the maintenance
provider or by flight department personnel.
Using an Electronic Logbook: Using an electronic
logbook could even further aid in the discovery and
troubleshooting of the parts installed on an aircraft. A
logbook would become not only a record of the history
of maintenance performed on the aircraft but would
also act as a data collection point for this information.
For example: a parts blockchain combined with
an electronic logbook would allow a person to " click "
on the part recorded as installed on the aircraft to
access its blockchain. The information accessed via the
blockchain could potentially give great insight into a
problem just encountered on the aircraft, making the
troubleshooting of the problem faster, and the resolution
potentially much easier than starting from scratch
without this information.
38 MARCH/APRIL 2022
AIRCRAFT MAINTENANCE TECHNOLOGY
March-April_2022

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