From Next Year, Aircraft Maintenance by Drone... Korean Air Develops World's First Inspection Solution

Korean Air Demonstrates 'Swarm Drone-Based Aircraft Inspection Solution'... Official Operation Next Year
Simultaneous Deployment of 4 Drones Cuts Inspection Time by 60%, from 10 to 4 Hours

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyewon] Based on its cutting-edge experience and technological expertise in manned and unmanned aircraft research and development, Korean Air has become the first in the world to showcase a technology that can simultaneously deploy multiple drones to inspect aircraft fuselages.

On the 16th, Korean Air held a demonstration event for the 'Fuselage Inspection Solution Using Swarm Drones' at its headquarters hangar in Gangseo-gu, Seoul, attended by Woo Ki-hong, President of Korean Air, Kim Yong-seok, Director of the Aviation Policy Office at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, and other officials. Korean Air plans to officially operate the system next year based on continuous drone pilot operations.

Using drones for aircraft fuselage inspection completely changes the current maintenance method, where workers must visually inspect the aircraft fuselage from heights up to 20 meters. This reduces the risk of safety accidents while enabling maintenance to be conducted more accurately and quickly, a stage currently being adopted by overseas airlines.

This solution, developed by Korean Air over about a year, is characterized by being the world’s first to deploy two or more drones simultaneously, significantly shortening maintenance time and dramatically improving operational stability.

The drones developed by Korean Air measure approximately 1 meter in width and length and weigh 5.5 kg. Four drones are deployed simultaneously to inspect the aircraft fuselage condition. An operating program was also developed. Each of the four drones flies within a pre-set area capturing video. If one drone malfunctions, the remaining drones autonomously complement each other to complete the planned mission.

Deploying four drones simultaneously reduces the current approximately 10-hour visual fuselage inspection time to about 4 hours, cutting it by around 60%, thereby improving aircraft on-time performance. In particular, the high-performance cameras mounted on the drones can identify details as small as 1 mm, accurately detecting minute damages that are difficult for workers to find visually from high places.

Additionally, Korean Air shares inspection data via the cloud, allowing related personnel to check results regardless of time and location. For safe drone operation, safety flight zone (Geo Fence) functions have been applied to maintain safe distances from the inspected aircraft and surrounding facilities, preventing collisions, evasions, and mission area violations.

This development is linked to government policies aimed at strengthening the competitiveness of the aviation maintenance (MRO) industry and improving aviation maintenance systems. Korean Air has revised maintenance regulations not only to develop the solution but also to mandate the deployment of safety personnel in addition to pilots and technicians, establishing grounds for drone maintenance operations and safety management measures.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.