Text 4. Aircraft Performance

The aircraft performance includes dimensional data and the main flying characteristics.

Dimensional data are length, wing span, height and width. The main flying characteristics are maximum take-off weight, maximum landing and payload weight, passenger capacity or number of seats, number of crew, cargo capacity, cruising speed, flight range, flight altitude, non-stop flying time, practical ceiling or service ceiling, engine type and thrust of each engine, number of engines, take-off and landing ground run, maximum fuel capacity, etc.

The aircraft usually takes the name of the designer or manufacturer. Here are some of the aircraft designers: Antonov, Ilushin, Tupolev, Yakovlev. Manufacturer's names are represented by: Boeing, Bristol, Canadair, Convair, Douglas, Lockheed, Vickers and others. Following the name of the designer or manufacturer comes a type code, known in some airlines as a class. For example: Antonov-70 (designer's name and type code), Douglas DC-6B (manufacturer's name and type code), etc. The aircraft can be supplied in some versions: Economy-Class Business-Class and First-Class.

Exercise 1. Answer the questions.

1. What dimensional data does the aircraft performance include? 2. What are the main flying characteristics? 3 The aircraft usually takes the name of the designer, doesn't it? 4. What is the type code? 5. What versions can an aircraft be supplied in?

Unit 1.5. Aircraft Ground Handling and Maintenance Text 1.

Read and translate the following text into Ukrainian.

Aircraft maintenance is the overhaul, repair, inspection or modification of an aircraft or aircraft component.

Maintenance includes the installation or removal of a component from an aircraft or aircraft subassembly, but does not include:

• Elementary work, such as removing and replacing tires, inspection plates, spark plugs, checking cylinder compression, etc.

• Servicing, such as refueling, washing windows.

• Any work done on an aircraft or aircraft component as part of the manufacturing process, prior to issue of a certificate of airworthiness or other certification document.

Maintenance may include such tasks as ensuring compliance with Airworthiness Directives or Service Bulletins.

Aircraft maintenance checks are periodic checks that have to be done on all aircraft after a certain amount of time or usage. Airlines and other commercial operators of large or turbine-powered aircraft follow a continuous inspection program approved by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in the United States, or by other airworthiness authorities such as Transport Canada or the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). Under FAA oversight, each operator prepares a Continuous Airworthiness Maintenance Program (CAMP) under its Operations Specifications or "OpSpecs". The CAMP includes both routine and detailed inspections. Airlines and airworthiness authorities casually refer to the detailed inspections as "checks", commonly one of the following: A check, B check, C check, or D check. A and B checks are lighter checks, while C and D are considered heavier checks.

A Check

This is performed approximately every 500 - 800 flight hours. It is usually done overnight at an airport gate. The actual occurrence of this check varies by aircraft type, the cycle count (takeoff and landing is considered an aircraft "cycle"), or the number of hours flown since the last check. The occurrence can be delayed by the airline if certain predetermined conditions are met.

B Check

This is performed approximately every 3-6 months. It is usually done in 1-3 days at an airport hangar. A similar occurrence schedule applies to the B check as to the A check. B checks may be incorporated into successive A checks, i.e.: A-1 through A-10 complete all the B check items.

C Check

This is performed approximately every 15–21 months or a specific amount of actual Flight Hours (FH) as defined by the manufacturer. This maintenance check is more extensive than a B Check, as pretty much the whole aircraft is inspected. This check puts the aircraft out of service and until it is completed, the aircraft must not leave the maintenance site. It also requires more space than A and B Checks - usually a hangar at a maintenance base. The time needed to complete such a check is generally 1-2 weeks. The schedule of occurrence has many factors and components as has been described, and thus varies by aircraft category and type.

D Check

This is - by far - the most comprehensive and demanding check for an airplane. It is also known as a Heavy Maintenance Visit (HMV). This check occurs approximately every 5–6 years. It is a check that, more or less, takes the entire airplane apart for inspection and overhaul. Such a check can generally take from 3 weeks to 2 months, depending on the aircraft and number of technicians involved (it is not uncommon to have as many as 100 technicians working on a Boeing 747 at the same time). It also requires the most space of all maintenance checks, and as such must be performed at a suitable maintenance base.

Because of the nature and the cost of such a check, most airlines - especially those with a large fleet - have to plan D Checks for their aircraft years in advance. Often, older aircraft being phased out of a particular airline's fleet are stored or scrapped upon reaching their next D Check, due to the high costs involved in it in comparison to the aircraft's value. Many Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) shops state that it is virtually impossible to perform a D Check profitably at a shop located within the United States. As such, only few of these shops offer D checks.

Exercise 1. Find the full names for the following abbreviations and acronyms.What types of transformations are possible while translating them into Ukrainian?

FAA, EASA, CAMP, OpSpecs, FH, HMV, MRO.

Exercise 2. Match the term to its definition.

a. overhaul	1. This term shall mean the procedure necessary to determine the operating conditions of a mechanism component or part of an aircraft, engine, propeller, or appliance, by measurement or operation, or both.
b. check	2. This term shall mean a visual examination to determine the condition of an aircraft, engine, propeller, or appliance of of any component or part thereof.
c. inspection	3. This term shall mean the disassembly of an aircraft, engine, propeller, or appliance to an extent necessary for complete inspection or check of each part thereof, the replacement, repair, adjustment, or refinish of such part or parts as are found upon inspection or check to require replacement, repair, or refinish and the reassembly of such aircraft, engine, propeller, or appliance.

Exercise 3. Determine what type of a check (A, C, or D) comprises the following activities. Remember that C and D checks include all items contained in the previous checks.

1. _____ check: it usually consists of a visual inspection of the interior and exterior areas of the airplane. This includes inspection of certain specified equipment for general condition, servicing systems and equipment with air, fluids, etc., operational check of electronics systems and flight controls.

2. _____ check: visual interior inspection of areas such as equipment compartments and wing bays, empennage, wheel wells, nacelles, and engines; visual exterior inspection of fuselage, wings and control surfaces, and empennage; operational checks of control surfaces, instruments, and essential flight equipment; equipment checks such as operational checks of systems and components; servicing such as lubrication, cleaning filters, screens, etc., replenish air, fluids, etc.; accomplishing nonroutine work (unscheduled work) as discovered by routine inspection; fixing faults and problems reported by pilots in the airplane technical log book.

3. ____ check: structural inspection of the control surfaces, landing gear and supporting structure, doors, hatches, fuselage, nacelles, horizontal and vertical stabilizers, and wings; inspection and refurbishing of areas such as control cabin, passenger cabin, cargo compartments galleys, and toilets; detailed visual inspection and operational checks of all systems; hard time and life-limited component changes as scheduled; structural, systems, and component repairs and replacement as discovered by routine inspection; servicing such as cleaning filters, screens, lubrication, and replenishment of air, fluids, etc.; engine run-up if applicable; test flight if required; fixing flight test faults as reported after test.

Exercise 5. Offer Ukrainian translation to the following word combinations. Provide explanations in English.

to overhaul and repair	выполнять профилактический и текущий ремонт ЛА
widebody airplane	широкофюзеляжный самолет, аэробус, допускающий посадку в ряд семи и более пассажиров
modular construction	модульная конструкция, при которой двигатель состоит из ряда модулей. Ремонт сводится к замене отказавшего или изношенного модуля.
on-condition maintenance	техобслуживание по состоянию, при котором ремонтно-восстановительные работы выполняются в зависимости от степени износа, а не от наработанных часов.

Read what aircraft technician does. Explain the words in italics. Write an adverticement to the newspaper offering a job of aircraft technician. What personal characteristics should such person possess?

An aircracft technician works at an airfield. They maintain, overhaul and repair big widebody airplanes. It takes a lot of time to prepare an airplane for flight. Modern aircraft and aeroengines are made in modular form. Modular construction facilitates the rapid replacement of worn assemblies. Special handling equipment makes it possible to replace complete modules without removing the engine from the aircraft. Modular construction and on-condition maintenance make the job of an aircraft technician easier.

Exercise 6. Read a job description of an aircraft mechanic and translate it into Ukrainian. Find the information about other specialists who help to maintain the aircraft. Prepare short job descriptions.

What Does an Aircraft Mechanic Do?

Aircraft Mechanics ensure airplanes, helicopters and other airborne vehicles are operating correctly. Aircraft Mechanics' specific responsibilities differ based on their specialization and position.

Responsibilities

Aircraft Mechanics maintain, repair and inspect aircraft in accordance with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) guidelines, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Some Aircraft Mechanics fix specific problems that the pilot or crew members tell them about while others perform periodic inspections. Aircraft Mechanics can perform tasks like:

• Keeping maintenance records on each aircraft

• Examining engines

• Replacing and repairing defective parts

• Repairing sheet metal

• Checking for cracks and corrosion in the wings and tail

• Troubleshooting problems

Specializations

Aircraft Mechanics can specialize in specific types of aircraft or specific parts of aircraft vehicles like the engine or electrical system. Three types of Aircraft Mechanics are:

• Airframe mechanics, who work on everything within an aircraft except the instruments, power plants and propellers;

• Power plant mechanics, who work on engines;

• Airframe and power plant (A&P) mechanics, who work on everything on an aircraft except the instruments.

Supervisors

Some Aircraft Mechanics supervise and manage other Aircraft Mechanics. These supervisors assign work to Aircraft Mechanics, decide when to use support shops to help solve a problem and sign off on Aircraft Mechanics' work to ensure the aircraft can fly safely, according to the United States Office of Personnel Management.

Aircraft Mechanics in supervisory positions must understand processes including:

• Startup and shutdown for the aircraft's systems

• Indications of abnormal aircraft operations

• Safety procedures

• Interrelation and interaction of aircraft systems