Getting the best result and value for your aircraft maintenance is essential.
There are many options when it comes to aircraft maintenance. Both value and expertise must be considered when deciding how to maintain your aircraft, and safety must always be first and foremost. While Transport Canada regulates the aviation industry and applies standards for maintenance, there is still a wide variance in the service and quality level, as well as the overall quote an owner can receive.
How does Take Flight Group’s Local Service (AircraftWorks and Air Partners) compare to a Service Centre in maintaining your aircraft? As an aircraft owner, what should you be aware of and look for in a provider?
Here’s a side-by-side comparison.
| TFG’s AircraftWorks and Air Partners | OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) | |
| Specialization in Aircraft | Yes | Yes |
| Certified by an engineer | Yes | Not required by FAA |
| Currency | CAD | USD |
| Rate per hour | $125 CAD | $120 – $130 USD |
| Costs to transport (approx.) | $0 | $28,000 |
| Crew costs for transport (approx.) | $0 | $1,700 |
| Service cost (based on 400 hours) | $50,000 CAD | $77,700 – $81,000 USD |
The benefit of using Take Flight Group’s local service becomes clear when comparing maintenance packages, including aircraft positioning costs. The long-term savings of using our local maintenance and our team’s experience ensure that we deliver value while upholding strict safety standards. Yet another way Take Flight Group makes your business fly.
Additional considerations:
- OEMs do not corner the market on quality. Take Flight Group offers the same standard or often better quality of workmanship than OEM facilities.
- We will work to ensure the most cost-effective, quality solution is found. Often a component is declared defective and replaced at significant expense when in actuality, the component simply requires a repair. We use our professional judgement to determine when it is practical to work with the OEM to develop a repair and save the part – many shops will not go through the effort.
- With Canadian shops, each task card must be certified by an endorsed engineer. The FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) has no similar requirement for US-based shops. As a result, the level of trained staff varies widely.
- Ultra-low-cost bids on maintenance mean that work is being overlooked. For example, a check that requires 400 hrs to complete will cost at least 40K. A bid of 25K means only 250hrs are being invested in the work – the only way to do this, is to skip parts of the inspection. The result is defects remain hidden, and the safety of the aircraft is in jeopardy.
