Aircraft End-of-Life Solutions (AELS) B.V.

The problem
What do you do with an aircraft, which is about to be withdrawn from service? Many aircraft owners will try to find a new operator or new owner. If no new operator is found before the aircraft's last service flight, the aircraft will often be stored somewhere waiting for a new user, sometimes for years. Fact is that the value of the aircraft will decrease over these years, parking fees and maintenance costs have to be paid and the condition of the aircraft worsens. The biggest cost factor, however, is the cost of ownership.

The longer an aircraft is parked, the harder it will be to obtain a good price. Especially when more and more of that type of aircraft are withdrawn from service and are offered on the market. Storing an aircraft is expensive and will often result in selling the aircraft for a value lower than could be reached when disassembled directly after the last flight, especially when the cost of parking, until the aircraft is sold, is incorporated in the financial balance.

The solution
A, yet, not very much considered solution is to disassemble the aircraft and sell the components under the owner's supervision, directly after its last flight. It might very well be possible that the component value of the (parked) aircraft exceeds its market value as a flyer. The decision between selling and disassembling the aircraft should be primary made on economical drivers. What is the best value that can be reached? AELS brings the right knowledge to the decision makers to prevent them from unnecessary investments, like flying the aircraft to a parking location.

Next to economical drivers, AELS also considers other important elements. One should think about the air transport safety regulations and environmental aspects of the chosen option. Especially the effect of a mistake made on this field and the possible negative consequences for the identity of the company have to be taken into account.

AELS is offering support during the decision process. At the centre of this support there is a unique analysis the end-of-life decision report. This report is made with the output of the AELS' end-of-life decision tool of which the customer’s aircraft is the input.

AELS is specialized in disassembling and dismantling in a quick and environmental friendly way.

The company offers two dismantling options:

• Base disassembly and dismantling, the aircraft is flown to one of AELS' base locations.
• On-site disassembly and dismantling, a custom made solution for an aircraft that can no longer fly

Base disassembly and dismantling
AELS is aware that most owners do not like an aircraft disassembled and dismantled in their backyard. Also creating a dedicated supply chain takes time and is very costly especially when this is done for a single aircraft. Therefore AELS offers the possibility to disassemble and dismantle aircraft at an environmentally sound location where the supply chain is optimized for a quick and efficient disassembly and dismantling process.

AELS currently offers base services currently at two continents. For the European market this is offered at Maastricht Aachen Airport and for the North American market at Gander International Airport. At Maastricht Aachen Airport we work in cooperation with the maintenance boulevard group.

On-site disassembly and dismantling
For some aircraft it is impossible to fly to a location where the disassembly and dismantling can take place. Therefore AELS offers the possibility to dismantle the aircraft where it is located. This can be an aircraft that:

• had an accident and is beyond economical repair
• is grounded due to technological shortcomings
• is grounded due to bankruptcy of the operator or owner

An AELS project engineer will determine what needs to be done and develops a project plan. AELS will try to find local partners to lower project costs and determines every other boundary condition. The total plan will be discussed with the parties involved and every licence needed will be obtained. During the complete process you will be updated continuously and asked to reflect on the plan to make sure we will satisfy your needs.

After the disassembly of an aircraft several components, such as engines and avionics, can be re-used on other aircraft. Many activities, however, need to be performed before the component can be re-used on an aircraft.

Activities that are required are for example:

• Marketing and sales of the components
• Logistics of the removed components
• Back-to-birth verification

AELS has the knowledge, capabilities and network to execute all activities required to re-introduce the components in the aviation sector.

Marketing and Sales
Many operators have an organisation focused on keeping the fleet operational. This particularly means that the organisation is optimised for purchasing components. AELS has a network that is specialized in selling components from end-of-life aircraft. This offers AELS the possibility to market components fast and efficient and obtain a maximum value.

Please note that AELS is not a broker but maintains an extensive network of possible buyers. This means that AELS won't stock customers’ components but will sell them even before the aircraft is disassembled. This will guarantee that clients will get their money faster.

AELS links the cost of this service to the result of the sale of components. In that way the company is pushed to acquire the highest value for customers’ components.

Logistics
Components are valuable but also vulnerable. This means that they need to be dealt with in a safe way. AELS can execute all the work prior to transport. This means activities such as packaging of the components and all kinds of administrative activities. After this the components need to be transported to the (new) owner. This is not only the transportation by road but also all kinds of additional paperwork.
In some cases AELS transports complete airframes to new locations.

Back-to-birth traceability
Before components from end-of-life aircraft can be re-used, it needs to be verified that they have back-to-birth paper work. AELS can determine whether or not the components of the customers’ aircraft have this traceability, and if needed, AELS can sort the paperwork to make re-use possible.