Aircraft support equipment technology insertion plan improves aircraft availability

Abstract

The support equipment technology insertion plan (SE-TIP) implements a systematic method to manage the acquisition, sustainment, and planning for an aircraft fleet's support equipment (SE). The SE-TIP coordinates these activities among the operator management, the aircraft's engineering authority, the aircraft's component supply chain, and SE users. The goals of the SE-TIP are to improve aircraft availability and to reduce downtime resulting from issues with SE. The SETIP looks to reduce the space and weight of SE, which must be dispatched with the aircraft as they operate in a remote location. The SE-TIP watches for SE, which is approaching its end of life or has been declared obsolete. One of the key benefits of the SE-TIP is that the process yields a cohesive plan to manage the procurement and sustainment of SE. By implementing the courses of action from the SE-TIP, a fleet operator can monitor the improvements in their maintenance operations to measure the intangible benefits of their investments.