IATA Aircraft Lease Guidance

Background
the repair is within SRM limits? And does this requirement apply to both internal and external repairs? In
many cases the Lessor will require that the repair file and the linked damage tolerance analysis for any
inspection requirements in the future are comprehensive and detailed enough to satisfy any regulatory
agency or future operator. Some Lessors also request any external repair to be a flush repair, which is not
always recommended or allowed by the manufacturers Structural Repair Manual (SRM) and subsequently
could necessitate replacement of the aircraft skin. Other Lessors may require repairs to be permanent, while
the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) only provides a repair solution that requires a repeated
inspection afterwards.
The Lessee needs to ensure that the requirements in the lease governing the performance of repairs are
achievable, consistent both with manufacturer guidelines and industry practice, and match with the
capabilities of the Lessee’s maintenance organization.
Please refer to Annex V for guidelines regarding structural repair files.
1.2.3 Records Presentation
Records presentation and consolidation is another area of difficulty. An aircraft will complete many “A-”, “C-”
and “D-checks” in its life, during which many mandatory inspections, modifications and repairs will be
performed. If a Lessor requires the Lessee to present documentation of repairs, modifications, ADs, or other
inspections task cards in a consolidated manner, it can be an extremely time-consuming and sometimes
impossible task to retrieve all documentation and build a complete historical records file. This will especially
be the case if the Lessee has not made any provisions from the start of the operation, and has left all the task
cards in the individual maintenance check packs. Note that electronic records can offer advantages in that
presentation of data can be done in various ways which may suit both the Lessee in operation and the Lessor
at transition. For a full list of documents, please refer to Annex II.
One must take into consideration that differing expectations of records standards lead to delays, which can
be time-consuming and result in additional unnecessary costs.
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