Airlines inspect grounded aircraft during pandemic with fine-tooth comb before giving the all-clear to fly again

Name: China plans to add over 30 new airports to its aviation network by 2025
Uploaded: 2021-07-04T04:37:59.000Z
Duration: 52 s
Description: China plans to add over 30 new airports to its aviation network by 2025

Airlines check for fungus, bugs and bird nests among a host of other issues to ensure the grounded aircraft are fit to fly

Between 200 and 300 hours of work is needed to take a parked Airbus A320 aircraft and make it ready to fly again

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Air France grounded most of its planes during the pandemic as travel demand plummeted. Photo: Bloomberg

Agence France-Presse

Published: 12:37pm, 4 Jul 2021Updated: 10:42pm, 4 Jul 2021

As travel picks up this summer, airlines are dusting off planes that were grounded during the pandemic, checking they are clear of fungus, bugs and bird nests before sending them back in the air.

In Paris this week, a tow tractor grabbed an Air France plane that had been parked outside for a year at Orly Airport and brought it to a cavernous hangar where technicians quickly removed the tarpaulins.

Like most airlines, Air France took the overwhelming majority of its planes out of service during the pandemic as travel restrictions choked traffic to a trickle.

As much as 80 per cent of its fleet was parked at the peak of the crisis.

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China plans to add over 30 new airports to its aviation network by 2025

The Airbus A321 at the Orly hangar will soon have to make up to seven flights a day as the summer season kicks off in Europe and Covid-weary travellers seek respite in sunny Mediterranean destinations.