4 ms·

They can be left wholly unattended but they will not be considered airworthy when their maintenance/inspection requirements lapse.

redis_mlc 6y ago
Not exactly. To be left unattended with the intention of flying them again, mothball/pickling is needed. (Tape the outside including sensor ports, plug the engine nacelles, use the right hydraulic or motor fluids, disconnect batteries, etc.) If you literally just park a 737 somewhere for months, especially a sandy desert, and walk away, then you might have to do millions of dollars of maintenance on the plane to be sure it's airworthy. Like pulling the engines and dealing with corrosion throughout the airplane. I have a small airplane example. The danger of parking an airplane for an extended period of time, even in a hangar, is that if mice create a nest in the fuselage and urinate there, the aluminum corrosion can cause structural damage. ie. that plane will never fly again. All those King Airs, Cessna 310s, etc. you see hangared are prone to that. So clean your airplane regularly!
- Razengan 6y ago
  > if mice create a nest in the fuselage and urinate there, the aluminum corrosion can cause structural damage. ie. that plane will never fly again. Reading that evokes a somber reminder of how quickly our civilization could turn into ruins if left unattended for a few years.
  - rickdangerous1 6y ago
    I was just envisioning what this storage airport would look like in 10 years if the airline industry NEVER picks back up to its previous levels. Trillions of dollars worth of airplanes rotting in the sun???
    - redis_mlc 6y ago
      I have a feeling the 800 or so 737 MAX aircraft will all be scrapped (or just the avionics parted out.) Besides the AOA sensor system problems, there's been FOD in the fuel tanks, wire chafing and very long periods of AOG. One of those might not be fatal, but all of them? Doesn't look good.
    - Razengan 6y ago
      > Trillions of dollars worth of airplanes rotting in the sun??? Should make for an interesting location in a post-apocalyptic or science-and-sorcery story.

redis_mlc 6y ago

Not exactly. To be left unattended with the intention of flying them again, mothball/pickling is needed. (Tape the outside including sensor ports, plug the engine nacelles, use the right hydraulic or motor fluids, disconnect batteries, etc.) If you literally just park a 737 somewhere for months, especially a sandy desert, and walk away, then you might have to do millions of dollars of maintenance on the plane to be sure it's airworthy. Like pulling the engines and dealing with corrosion throughout the airplane. I have a small airplane example. The danger of parking an airplane for an extended period of time, even in a hangar, is that if mice create a nest in the fuselage and urinate there, the aluminum corrosion can cause structural damage. ie. that plane will never fly again. All those King Airs, Cessna 310s, etc. you see hangared are prone to that. So clean your airplane regularly!

Razengan 6y ago
> if mice create a nest in the fuselage and urinate there, the aluminum corrosion can cause structural damage. ie. that plane will never fly again. Reading that evokes a somber reminder of how quickly our civilization could turn into ruins if left unattended for a few years.
- rickdangerous1 6y ago
  I was just envisioning what this storage airport would look like in 10 years if the airline industry NEVER picks back up to its previous levels. Trillions of dollars worth of airplanes rotting in the sun???
  - redis_mlc 6y ago
    I have a feeling the 800 or so 737 MAX aircraft will all be scrapped (or just the avionics parted out.) Besides the AOA sensor system problems, there's been FOD in the fuel tanks, wire chafing and very long periods of AOG. One of those might not be fatal, but all of them? Doesn't look good.
  - Razengan 6y ago
    > Trillions of dollars worth of airplanes rotting in the sun??? Should make for an interesting location in a post-apocalyptic or science-and-sorcery story.