5. Analysis procedure for aircraft structures

This section presents the main guidelines for the development of scheduled maintenance tasks for aircraft structures. Each structural element is assessed in terms of its importance to the continued airworthiness of the aircraft, its susceptibility to any form of damage, and the difficulty of detecting it. Once this stage has been completed, programmed structural maintenance can be developed. It must prove effective in detecting and avoiding structural degradation due to fatigue, environmental and accidental damage during the aircraft's lifetime. Scheduled structural maintenance tasks are used to meet the requirements of aircraft type certification.