march2022 - 16

Industry Expert Column
Break the Ground
Damage Code
While many organizations within the aviation industry have tried
to create a common formula for measurement, ground damage
is often calculated in different ways and can be difficult to compare.
BY IVAR BUSK
G
round damage is a wellknown
problem in the aviation
industry. The problem has
existed since the start of aviation. In
recent years (before the coronavirus
pandemic), there has been a lot of
focus on exactly this subject.
The cost often involves a loss that
directly impacts the bottom line. Many
initiatives have been taken to come
up with solutions to prevent these
occurrences.
But up until now, the situation has not
changed significantly, despite the many
efforts and as so, safety is still a very
important issue.
Definitions
Various organizations in the aviation
industry have tried to agree on
a common definition of how ground
damage should be registered and not
least associated to disruption cost. One is
the definition of where the damage happens
- and the best one - is as follows.
" Aircraft ground operation can be defined as
from the moment the aircraft start taxiing,
after landing run and until the throttles are
commenced for take-off. "
A further detail is breaking down
what exactly is included in damage of
ground operation:
* Servicing, which includes all handling
activities
* Maintenance
* Aircraft operation under own power
* External actions e.g., airport authorities
Another question is what should
be reported. In general, all damage
should be reported when it happens
and should be assessed by
16 || Ground Support Worldwide || March 2022
qualified maintenance staff before
new departure.
However, unfortunately the most
common damage is seldom reported
when it happens and it becomes classified
as " unreported damage. "
This will present a major problem if
the damage has a bearing on the flight
characteristic. Most damage happens
by service equipment during handling.
Exposed places include cargo doors, surroundings
and wing-mounted engines.
Statistics
Statistics are often calculated in different
ways and can therefore be difficult
to compare.
Also, the definition of a " ground
damage " is different depending on the
airline or organization. Many organizations
within the aviation industry have
tried to create a common formula for
measurement.
The International Air Transport
Association (IATA) has been in the lead.
Airports Council International (ACI)
and Flight Safety Foundation (FSF) by
their ground accident prevention (GAP)
project have also tried. The calculation
is based on the number of departures
verses the number of registered as damaged,
including unreported damage.
On a worldwide basis, there were
approximately 32 million departures
with jet aircraft in service in 2019, up
from approximately 18 million departures
in 2001.
The damage frequency is normally
calculated per 1,000 departures. Over
the last 20 years, the damage frequencies
have been on an average of 0.6-0.75
per 1,000 departures - some years higher
and some years lower.
Based on the figures above, the total
number can be calculated as, per 2019, 32
million departures multiplied by 0.7 per
1,000 departures equaling 22,400 damages
per year worldwide.
But it should be noted that the magnitude
of the damage ranges from a scratch
that needs repair to a total loss due to
ground damage.
Cost of Damage
The cost of ground damage has always
been a subject of discussion.
Depending on the organization
within each company, the way cost is
calculated can vary.
Also, depending on where in the
world it occurred, the cost can vary a lot
due to the country's economic standing.
For example, the Nordic countries
have a higher cost level than east Asian
countries do.
If we use the Nordic countries cost
level, an average damage's direct cost
has been calculated to approximately
$18,000 (USD) per damage and the indirect
cost (consequential/disruption) 4-10
times higher.
If we assume that six times higher
is an average, the cost will be $18,000
multiplied by 6 multiplied by 22,400
equates to $2,419,200,000 (USD) - or the
same as 30 new 737s or A320s.
It should be noted, that in this calculation
personal injuries of staff is not
included. The cost for passenger injury
is marginal and also not included. The
indirect cost is the most difficult to calculate.
The immediate indirect cost is
march2022

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