Airlines starting to return stored planes to service are being warned by regulators and insurers that masks, testing and vaccines are good for the passengers, but the planes need safety care, too, after being grounded for months.
Part of the issue is checking for degraded equipment, insect nests in engine parts (Yes, that’s happened; in June a Wizz Air flight was aborted after insects caused the airspeed indicator to read zero just as the plane was taking off.) and any damage or maintenance errors. The EU’s Aviation Safety Agency says there have been an alarming number of unreliable airspeed and altitude readings during a plane’s first flight out of storage.
The other issue relates to pilots getting back up to speed after, in some cases, most of the year not flying. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) says it has seen a sharp rise in ‘unstabilized’ or poorly handled approaches, which can result in hard landings or even crashes.
IATA’s data has caused major airline insurers to question their airline clients about whether they are focusing extra training attention on approaches and landings, the most difficult and potentially dangerous part of flying.
