As travel picks up this summer, airlines are dusting off planes that were grounded during the pandemic, checking they are clear of fungus, bugs and bird nests before sending them back in the air. Like most airlines, Air France took the overwhelming majority of its planes out of service during the pandemic as travel restrictions choked traffic to a trickle. In the hangar the size of several football pitches, teams of technicians normally work in shifts 24/7 to ensure Air France aircraft are fit to fly. The birds love to make their nests on parked planes, particularly on the wings at the level of the ailerons, and their droppings are corrosive. At Orly, between 200 and 300 hours of work is needed to take a parked Airbus A320 family model aircraft and make it ready to fly again.

Source: Mint July 04, 2021 02:48 UTC