Boeing 737 AirStairs

[keesje]

Does anyone have information on the removal of those on the 737s.

http://avherald.com/img/ryanair_b738_ei-dlj_stansted_090717_1.jpg

Boeing 737 -Air Stairs - YouTube

Who does it? Are there any STC's?

Thnx!

[OutsideCAS]

See the link below;

http://www.boeing.com/assets/pdf/commercial/startup/pdf/737ng_ext.pdf

It would seem that Boeing do allow for the airstairs to be removed for an extended period at least. Maybe contact Boeing directly for more info?

[c100driver]

Approximately half our fleet had them installed. They were all removed years ago to save fuel and increase payload.

[Mach E Avelli]

Our old 732s had a concrete block under the forward floor to help keep the c. of g. in limits. So there was no real performance advantage in removing them. It was more to do with saving on maintenance. Longer body aircraft may not have the c. of g. issue.

But not having airstairs can be bloody inconvenient when you stray from a regular network to do ad hoc charters.

[keesje]

Thanks for the info. If an aircraft changes operators for a longer period, Air Stairs can be removed. The savings on fuel and maintenance are significant, justifying the removal costs.

http://www.monogramsystems.com/images/p_airstairs.jpg

There must be an STC for that. Someone engineered the modification work and authorities (FAA, EASA) approved it.

Any info on maintenance companies that have performed 737 airstairs removals? They know / paid for it!