Each year, airlines can potentially lose millions of dollars due to small accidents that occur on the flightline, such as a minor collision with a baggage loader. Currently, an aircraft must be grounded following these incidents while extensive tests are conducted to confirm its integrity and airworthiness. For carbon fiber composites, when damage does occur, it can cause what’s known as “sub-surface delamination” — which is difficult to spot with visual inspection alone. GE’s Bondtracer allows flightline and ramp crews to evaluate the severity of impact damage right at the gateEach year, airlines can potentially lose millions of dollars due to small accidents that occur on the flightline, such as a minor collision with a baggage loader. Currently, an aircraft must be grounded following these incidents while extensive tests are conducted to confirm its integrity and airworthiness. For carbon fiber composites, when damage does occur, it can cause what’s known as “sub-surface delamination” — which is difficult to spot with visual inspection alone. GE’s Bondtracer allows flightline and ramp crews to evaluate the severity of impact damage right at the gate
Putting agent “Bond” on the case: Under a license from the Boeing Management Company, GE Sensing & Inspection Technologies developed the Bondtracer, a simple tool that will allow flightline and ramp crews at airports to quickly and easily evaluate possible damage to composite structures caused by accidental collisions with baggage loaders and other vehicles.
As aviation news site flightglobal.com notes: “GE likens Bondracer to a common stud-finder, with a green light indicating consistent undamaged thickness and a red light indicating an unanticipated change in thickness. The tool is designed for ramp personnel with no non-destructive training or certification.”
Developed in cooperation with Boeing and building upon the Boeing Ramp Damage Checker invention, GE’s Bondtracer will help operators dispatch airworthy aircraft quickly, preventing unnecessary grounding or flight delays and providing significant savings. While the Bondtracer can be used on any plane with a composite structure, it will be particularly useful on the new Boeing 787 Dreamliner, which makes greater use of composite materials in its airframe and primary structure than any previous Boeing commercial aircraft.
“Carbon fiber composites require different processes for evaluating impact and performing non-destructive inspection,” says Theirry Laffont, aerospace segment leader at GE Sensing & Inspection Technologies. “Our goal with Bondtracer is to provide ramp crews with a simple device to quickly determine when more extensive inspection is required. The solution allows airlines to ensure safety, while increasing efficiency and productivity.”
* Read the announcement
* Learn more about Bondtracer
* Read the story on flightglobal.com
