Most fliers take for granted the comfortable bump they feel as the landing gear touches the runway. Every time the aeroplane touches the runway, this sophisticated piece of machinery guarantees a secure landing.
An estimated 90,000 flights take off and land each day all over the world. The landing gear on an aircraft is a crucial part that must be extremely robust since it is not impervious to wear and strain and is susceptible to corrosion and damage. The landing gear is essential for stabilising the aircraft during takeoff and landing, sustaining the weight of the aircraft while it is on the ground and cushioning landing impact.
Interim Chief Executive Officer at SAAT, Wellington Nyuswa, expressed his pride in the SAAT team’s accomplishment, adding that
“Our strategic plan is to expand our landing gear shop and back-shop capabilities while focusing on sustainable profitability and efficiency.
With SAAT now operating with an organizational structure that is fit for purpose, we believe this will empower and motivate the team to continuously look for ways to improve and make SAAT the industry benchmark.”
South African’s Boeing 737-800 Aircraft Landing Gear
South African Airways Technical (SAAT), a South African Airways (SAA) subsidiary, has raised the bar by rebuilding a Boeing 737-800 aircraft landing gear ship set in record time, in keeping with its commitment to safety requirements.
Technical maintenance is frequently a laborious operation that, according to industry norms, might take up to 60 days to complete. The overhaul of a set of landing gears by SAAT took a record-breaking 40 days.
James Nthulana, Production Leader at SAAT, said
“Completing this project within 40 days is one of the most significant achievements in my career, and I attribute it to effective communication, team commitment and thorough planning.
This accomplishment has put us on the map as one of the few facilities in Africa with such capabilities and is a proof point to manufacturers.”
With a 28-year employment history with SAAT. The project has special meaning for Nthulana, who has worked on landing gears for more than 21 years, starting his career as a mechanic and progressing to Production Leader.
Despite early concerns that the effort could only be accomplished outside of South Africa, SAAT was given the job and immediately got to work finishing the overhaul on time and under the allocated budget.
SAAT’s capacity to bring the company around and expand with SAA to create a company that South Africa can be proud of. The initiative is proof of SAAT’s recovery plan to become a premier centre of excellence for maintenance, repair, and overhaul.
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