Aviation Aftermarket 101: What Type of Plane Is It, and Why Should I Care?

Welcome back to Aviation Aftermarket 101, practical lessons from the School of Hard Knocks. Time for more tips from the tipster himself regarding the importance of data input and aircraft identification.

When a client airline sends you an RFQ for a part number that you have never heard of before, take a minute to create the part number in your system. Got that, buster? CREATE THE PART NUMBER IN YOUR DATABASE. Then POPULATE THE DATA.

Even if the effort doesn’t pay off today, you are paving the way for future generations to work faster and smarter because you laid the groundwork. Go the extra mile - it also makes your co-workers look like incompetent slackers.

This is not the time to be lazy. In fact, there’s no good time to be lazy anymore. You are on call and expected to perform 24/7/365. Be ambitious: if you work hard and do a good job, someday you may get a better job with a better company. But for now, the job you have is still better than asking, “You want fries with that?”

Look, I’m not going to do your thinking for you. But I will tell you to pay attention to the RFQs for hints. I’ll describe how to unearth pertinent details that the less-than-forthcoming airline buyer didn’t divulge. Here’s what to do, Buckaroo:

When you enter the part number in your aviation software you should add as many details to the part number screen as you can. You’ve already got the part number and the description; now you should populate the data. Maybe you can suss out the aircraft application, the OEM, or the ATA chapter. Is it rotable, serialized, is it time-sensitive or cycle sensitive? Run the part number (open -dash) on the ILS and The145 and hunt for the CAGE code and possible alternates.

Those blessed with an adrenaline-fueled memory will recall the invaluable technique outlined by the sage himself https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/aviation-101-ils-export-bruce-miller-1e/

Gather data like a squirrel, build up the part number screen. Figure it all out.

When you have the basic knowledge entered correctly, you can call upon that data in the future when you need to know what you have or what you're looking for.

When you grow up to be a big-time buyer you will need to know how to focus on parts that you can move at a profit. You will enjoy counting your cash much more than counting dreck during your physical audit year after year.

Then again, someday you may be called on to create a push list of the stock you have, or of the repairs that you can do. Most of the push lists that you see are garbage, an ineffectual waste of time for everyone involved. Your job, if you have the attention span to complete it, is to make push lists that focus on a sliver. Be sure that you send them first to an audience that cares about that facet of the industry.

Maybe you want to concentrate on landing gear – that’s all ATA 32 stuff.

Perhaps you have a pile of Parker parts parked upon your shelf that you would prefer to convert into currency.

But most of all, you should sort your parts by aircraft application.

Sometimes there’s a tail number on the RFQ. Awesome, dude! Easy-peasy: Google the tail number and you’ll see exactly what type of aircraft it belongs to.

“And why do I care?” say the unwashed millions.

Here’s why: Knowing the aircraft application is one of the most important bits of data you can have. It is critical to the airline buyer that you show them only stock that they can use. A buyer for a fleet of Airbus cares for DC10 parts about as much as I care for Jackson Pollack or rap music.

And, in general, you should learn to know what plane is hot, what’s not, and what’s squat.

For example, unless you have a good reason to be especially strong in the A310 aircraft, for example, you may want to nudge that RFQ away with an eleven-foot pole (because a ten-foot pole just isn’t long enough). 

But if the part comes from a popular plane like a B737NG, or and A320, you could have an opportunity that is worth your effort.

Other hotties are the B777 (you’ll sound uber-cool when you call it a “triple 7”). Close to 90% of all the triple-sevens ever built are still flying – and Boeing is still making them, albeit at a slowing pace.

Because Amazon is buying up B767’s left and right, the desirability (value) of their parts is on the upswing. Amazon has prolonged their story, putting used B767’s back on the best-selling list for a while.

And “the flying pencil”, AKA B757, is also seeing a second life (or is it a last gasp?) as a cargo carrier. 

Even the B747 is regaining some lost luster due to recent low fuel prices, but the B747 is going to become the dowager queen soon or even sooner than soon. Most of them have been converted to freighters. But fuel prices are headed back up, which is bad news for you and me and especially for the Queen of the Skies.

But at least the Queen HAD a heyday, unlike the A380, which was built mainly for European bragging rights, and they’re not bragging about it anymore. This white elephant is the next Edsel. In the evolution of aircraft, it’s a big, fat appendix.

I’m fond of the A330 because over 85% of them are still active, nicely exceeding my 80-20 rule of thumb, rule of life.

By contrast, the A340 is down to 44% still flying, and that percentage is sinking like a stone. Nope, not interesting. Those four engines are old gas-guzzlers, and it still lacks the Queen’s size. It’s only saving grace is that Airbus deliberately engineered lots of commonality across its various platforms. So about 60% of the accessories found on the A340 are also found on A320’s of similar vintage.

B737 classic, less than 25% are still active. Boo. Several thousand of them have been torn down, meaning that parts are cheap and plentiful. Move along people, there’s nothing to look at here, there’s no money to be made.

B737NG, over 90% active. Schwing! A350, ring-a-ding-ding!

On another branch of the evolutionary tree are Embraer and the gazillion permutations of Bombardier. In broad strokes, the new ERJ’s are sweetness personified, with over 90% of the babelicious ERJ190’s doing their thang. I didn’t say anything about Bombardier.

One the other hand, some planes are too hot to be important to the secondary market (yet – give ‘em a few years). The best Example may be A320neo which is so new that most of the planes are still under original warranty. And none of them are being torn down. When 100% of the fleet is flying there are no cheap spares floating around.

At the time of this writing, the B737MAX is in a unique category, with 100% of the lanes not flying. If you manage to repair a part on one of them, you might get xtra credit. Just stay away from those angle of attack sensors.

Once you’ve determined the aircraft type, ask yourself if this type of plane still in high demand. Is it on the upswing, or is it well into its inevitable decline? Knowing this will help you gauge how much effort to put into the RFQ. It will also help you determine the scarcity and value of the parts.

Every type of plane has a story. Your job is to become literate.