Is Your Plane Repairable On The Ground? What Supervised Aircraft Maintenance Means Working on your own airplane is a complex issue and more importantly it is highly regulated. The FAA even allows unlicensed individuals to assist in maintenance, while supervised by a certificated mechanic. A breakdown of the outlines part is below:
Regulatory Framework
This practice is primarily regulated by 14 CFR § 43.3(d), which allows individuals who do not hold a mechanic or repairman certificate to perform maintenance tasks as long as they are under the supervision of someone with such certification. For example, the supervisor has to be present while looking at work and when observing security standards12.
Importance of Supervision
This makes sure all maintenance work is supervised and therefore completed to a high standard of safety and quality. The supervising mechanic must also approve the work and sign off, which highlights how vital they are in these processes. This regulation is in place so that only an appropriate person can confirm the airworthiness of an aircraft once it has been maintained24.
Technological Considerations
As for the technology argument, there has been talk about whether remote supervision through video conferencing is feasible now-a-days. But more recent FAA interpretations have stressed that it cannot effectively oversee what it cannot physically inspect. Integrity — To reduce risks in remote supervised maintenance such that tasks perform as intended and safely
In conclusion, maintenance may be accomplished by the owner of an aircraft but it must be done in compliance with a certified mechanic who is physically within sight during that process. This framework is set up for increasing the safety in this and other aviation sectors.
