Does your aircraft have wiring issues? Are you wondering when you should rewire part or all of your aircraft? InterConnect Wiring has done multiple studies analyzing wire over the last 26 years. Below are the Top 5 Reasons to Rewire an aircraft.
TYPE OF WIRE INSULATION
Many older aircraft have polyimide insulation. A commonly known type of polyimide insulation is Kapton™. Find here information about the disadvantages of this type of wire insulation.
ENVIRONMENT WHERE OPERATED
Harsh environment is another top reason to rewire. An aircraft that primarily operates in a wet, salty, and/or humid environment is more likely to need to be rewired much sooner than one that is operated in a hot, dry environment. A wire that undergoes hydrolysis is more likely to become aged and brittle.
AGE OF AIRCRAFT
Age of an aircraft is defined as the number of years since it left the production line. Generally speaking (and depending on the type of wire insulation and the environment where it was operated) rewire should be considered once an aircraft is 20 years old. After 20 years, the cost-benefit analysis indicates it may just be more beneficial to rewire a fleet of aircraft than to keep maintaining and fixing wire-related problems!
NUMBER OF INTERMITTENT PROBLEMS EXPERIENCED OVER PAST YEAR
The fourth reason to rewire is when the number of intermittent and wire-related problems increase in your aircraft. Some aircraft seem to have more wire-related problems than others. Typically, they either have a gremlin or were operated in a harsher environment than other aircraft in the fleet. It is recommended that all intermittent problems be recorded and analyzed on a yearly basis. If this analysis is done over many years, trends become apparent and justify a complete or at least partial rewire of an aircraft.
NUMBER OF FLIGHT HOURS
“Excessive flight hours” is certainly a factor and should be considered, however, it is not the most important reason to rewire. There is no doubt that aircraft flown more often than other aircraft tend to have more intermittent and wire-related problems than other aircraft. But we know that the type of insulation, the environment, the age of the aircraft, and the number of intermittent problems are even more important reasons to rewire your aircraft.
If you would like more information or to discuss any of these 5 Reasons to Rewire, contact us! In the Message* box, reference “5 Reasons” and we will touch base with you shortly.
