Beyond flight operations: Assessing the environmental impact of aircraft maintenance through life cycle assessment
Antonia Rahn, M. Schuch, Kai Wicke, Benjamin Sprecher, Clemens Dransfeld, Gerko Wende
Abstract
As the aviation industry strives to minimize its environmental footprint, understanding the full life cycle impacts, including maintenance, becomes essential for sustainable development. This paper addresses the critical research gap in the environmental assessment of aircraft maintenance by conducting a comprehensive life cycle assessment based on an Airbus A320 aircraft. By combining a top-down check-level analysis and a detailed examination of the aircraft manufacturer’s maintenance planning document, this study provides significant insights into the environmental implications of maintenance activities. The check-level analysis provides a general overview, while the analysis of the maintenance planning document delves into individual tasks, enabling the identification of components with the highest ecological impacts. This research emphasizes the importance of including aircraft maintenance activities in life cycle assessment studies and provides valuable guidance for researchers, industry practitioners, and policy makers in prioritizing sustainability measures and enhancing the environmental performance of aircraft throughout their life cycle.