How long do airlines keep planes in service

These include heavy hitting airlines like Emirates and Etihad and low-cost behemoths like EasyJet. Other top carriers, including Lufthansa, Cathay Pacific, and Singapore Airlines have canceled up to 95 percent of their flights.

But what actually happens to all those aircraft if they aren't ferrying passengers? Parking a plane for a few months is not as simple as leaving it at an airport and waiting for flights to start again. Turns out it takes a lot of effort and coordination for airlines to simply ground their planes. Every few days, the airplane is scheduled to spend time at a maintenance base, undergoing part of a more thorough maintenance examination.

Every couple of years, the airplane is taken out of service for what's called a "heavy" maintenance check. During this process, nearly all access panels are opened and parts of the plane — including the interior — are removed for closer inspection. Any corrosion is repaired and many other tasks are accomplished. After passing the heavy checklist, the airplane is again ready to fly several thousand hours per year.

You may even be able to find them on eBay. Once a jet has been stripped bare of usable parts, its metal frame is redeemed for scrap value. And who knows what happens to the scrap once it gets recycled? Brittany Lyte is an award-winning journalist based in Hawaii and New York. Subscribe for the latest news on trade lanes, customs and tariff changes, and expert economic insight.

New Flexport Visibility, real-time transportation tracking across your supply chain. Learn More. Help Sign In English. Tags: Airfreight ,. Dan Wang. Ready to Get Started? Flexport makes shipping your cargo transparent, reliable, and affordable Get Started. Share the Article Share Tweet Share. More From Flexport. Sign up for a Flexport account or ask to see our platform in action. Get Started. Some airlines, however, keep their planes for a longer time.

This is especially true if the airline has no good replacement for the type. Nevertheless, most planes can get up there in age with extensive maintenance and planning and still be safe for passenger operations. What is the oldest aircraft that you have flown on? Let us know in the comments! Follow him on social media for all his latest travel updates.