Question re Aircraft Components

[Atlas Shrugged]

I have been approached to organise some Products Liability insurance for an Australian company that manufactures and repairs aircraft components for Boeing aircraft under contract to a major airline. Their product range consists largely of cabin/galley equipment, trolleys, ground support equipment and inner panels. Other items include floor tracks, such as splices and ribs for flooring connections, flight crew seats and components.

My main area of concern is in the policy exclusion relating to aircraft products which excludes cover for liability arising out of any products which are aircraft component parts used for maintaining an aircraft in flight or moving upon the ground or those products used in the construction of an aircraft hull or machinery.

My question to the engineers is are the inner panels, floor tracks, flooring connections, splices and ribs and seats considered to be part of the hull, or something which would fall within the exclusion? I'm not looking for a legal definition, but rather a technical one.

AS

[Genghis the Engineer]

I think you may be better renegotiating the insurance policy.

Inner panels are usually accoustic and unstressed, you're probably okay there.

If floor tracks and connections fail however, with a heavy load, you're at risk of a major CG shift, causing a loss of control over the aircraft. If it's a passenger load, you're in danger of injury to individual passengers.

If a rib fails, something structural will go with it.

Seats are very critical, since although not highly loaded in normal use, they are crashworthy components which must withstand particular high loads, then fail in a particular controlled manner.


On the whole, I think that you need to keep your insurance premiums down by demonstrating a very high level of competence, rather than exclusions in these sort of areas - which at present read to me like a list of excuses to avoid ever paying out.

G

[avoman]

Galleys and trolleys are generally considered 'non-airworthiness' items. They do not feature in the official aircraft manufacturers parts catalog, a very important document. Although they must conform to various requirements to be used on aircraft. A fault or failure is usually not serious.
Pretty much all the others except ground equipment feature in the manufacturer's build, in the parts catalog and have airworthiness implications. I suppose pilots' seats are not strictly part of the hull but the track to which the seat attaches definitely is. From your insurer's brief they seem to be considered differently. However they are equally critical airworthiness items.

[Atlas Shrugged]

Thanks very much for the replies guys

:ok: