Battling Maintenance Complacency Requires Double-Checks, Engagement, Accountability

In the fast-changing, increasingly technical world of business aircraft maintenance, there’s simply no place for complacency or resting on past knowledge and practices. As anyone working in aviation knows, safety is paramount, and regular aircraft maintenance is a critical component of that safety commitment.

Highly trained aircraft maintenance technicians (AMTs) literally hold the lives of passengers and crew in their hands with every turn of the wrench. For that reason, keeping AMTs engaged and focused on following proper procedures requires constant monitoring of maintenance crews and their work environments, as well as completed tasks.

Operators and flight departments must also ensure AMTs are regularly kept abreast of changes in maintenance procedures and practices. Often, that requires offering off-site training opportunities.

“I think it’s important to allow technicians to engage outside of the organization as much as possible,” said Stewart D’Leon, CAM, NBAA director, environmental and technical operations. “Things like proficiency training are extremely important, because it gets [AMTs] back into focusing on some of the basics, whether that be aircraft-specific upgrade training or recurrent training. It also gives them the ability to work with other technicians in other departments where they can benefit from the trading of information that takes place.”

Combating Complacency

In the area of aircraft maintenance, complacency occurs when technicians become content with existing practices, which can cause them to be less focused on detail. It typically occurs when technicians become too comfortable with routine tasks, especially if they’re working on the same aircraft for long periods. They may miss potential risks or cut corners to expedite processes.

According to experts, complacency can result from:

• Performing routine, repetitive maintenance tasks which can create a sense of familiarity, causing decreased attentiveness
• Experienced technicians who may become overconfident over time and aren’t as thorough
• Deadline pressures and time constraints sometimes will compel maintenance personnel to focus on speed over precision
• A lack of consistent feedback makes it difficult to identify and correct complacent behaviors
• A workplace culture that fails to emphasize the importance of thoroughness and the need for ongoing training and improvement also can lead to workplace complacency.

All this can lead to regulatory issues, poor maintenance procedures, technical issues in aircraft and worse. Combating complacency requires creating a sense of engagement and staying vigilant, knowing that there are distractions that can cause AMTs to lose focus, according to Jim Elston, senior director of aviation at Coca-Cola Consolidated, Inc.
“Some of the things that we’ve done in our organization or with our team here are simplistic, but they are built around the buddy system, if you will,” Elston said. “We create a set of checks and balances where, if somebody’s working on the airplane, we’ll always have a second set of eyes come behind them. We verify the workspace is clean and clear before we close up work or return an aircraft to service.”
Elston said no aircraft is returned to work before these inspections take place.

“If somebody’s here working alone, that’s fine; but we ask that they text or call somebody to let them know when they’re starting work and when they’re finishing work,” he said. “That way somebody knows at all times that they’re okay; their personal safety is intact, but also that the aircraft is preserved, so there are no gaps that way.”

‘Holding Each Other Accountable’

Andy Kiehl, vice president of fleet maintenance at Executive Jet Management (EJM), based in Cincinnati, OH, said pilots and maintenance technicians always work on dedicated aircraft. “We get people who have been doing things for a really long time, so sometimes complacency can creep in,” said Kiehl who, along with two other vice presidents, oversees a maintenance staff of 200 across various locations.

Their AMTs typically work on brand-new aircraft, he said, which often don’t require the detailed, labor-intensive work of older jets.

“Things are running well, and maybe you do 200 post-flight inspections in a year, and that’s really it,” Kiehl added. “You’re just making sure that leaks-and-seeps and wear-and-tear items are monitored and taken care of, but you’re not really taking care of big catastrophes or ripping the gear out from under the airplane or doing an engine change. For that reason, complacency is something we’re attuned to and always raising awareness of.”

Inspecting work is paramount at EJM, which operates a maintenance control office that reviews and audits all work orders and completed maintenance.

“All that paperwork is checked and sent back here, and we make sure that parts tags are complete and look good, and references are used and checklists are filled out,” Kiehl said. “We also go on-site and audit the airplanes in our fleet and make sure that our maintenance crews out in the field are keeping up our maintenance standards.”

In short, Kiehl said EJM has created a culture where everyone inspects everyone.

“And if a maintenance technician wants to ask a question of a crew member or a pilot wants to ask the question of the maintenance technician, it’s all done in a safe place where you can ask or you can challenge,” he said. “It’s about holding each other accountable to create a good culture.”