Maintenance personnel clothing

[sph33r]

Good afternoon, I would like to persuade the boss to let the techs in the hangar and on the flightline wear shorts during the day, since the mid 30's -celsius- here are a norm and the issued uniforms are just unbearable. I have been searching for any regulations regarding this but cannot find anything, from any aviation authority regarding the matter. Is there anyone who can point me to any info, be it CAA, EASA, FAA or any other authority and/or company's regulations on this matter... I would like to be as informed as possible before i walk into his office and potentially put my foot in my mouth - or his elsewhere....

[Rigga]

While I sympathise with your guys’ lack of comfort, the clothing they wear depends on the insurance cover for wearing PPE.

At a former company I used to state that anyone who does not wear PPE ‘properly’ may lose 50% of any claim against the company for any harm caused in this state of ‘undress’, accordingly the company may also lose 50% of its protections due to an apparent lack of enforcement of the clothing rules!
= Suit yourself!!

[wrench1]

FAA or any other authority...
On this side, the FAA has zero to do with what clothing is worn. It falls to the company requirements and to OSHA for enforcement of PPE. We fought same for years but to no availe and we wore dark gray uniforms in equal or hotter/humid conditons. But personally, I would not have worn shorts as turbine fuel direct to the skin is not fun and always preferred the discomfort of heat to that experience. Good luck

[sph33r]

as turbine fuel direct to the skin is not fun and always preferred the discomfort of heat to that experience. Good luck
The argument I get to this is "so if it lands on our arms its ok?", as short sleeves are worn for the vast majority of time...
Basically it comes down to a "standard practice" issue from what I understand. So i guess some sort of compromise is in order, better breathing pants or so.... The insurance thing Id have to look into, it never really crossed my mind to be honest. Thanks for the info guys...

[Ultranomad]

When on the maintenance apron, I switched to shorts two weeks ago, and I wasn't the first one around the apron. However, sometimes after maintenance it takes quite a bit of effort to wash various grime, grease and various "aviation perfume" off the arms and legs, so I am thinking of those full-length military uniforms specially designed for hot climates (e.g. wind-permeable tough netting over silk underwear). These may work in your case, too.

[wrench1]

The argument I get to this is "so if it lands on our arms its ok?"...
We went through the same. But having swam in turbine fuel on occassion certain body parts are more sensitive than others with arms at the bottom of the list. The other issue we had in some locations was the sheer ambient temp that would heat up the ramp, the aircraft, and even our tools. Had a couple guys got "burned" by leaning against a black pole. Our compromise was uniform color. Tan over gray was remarkably cooler. It's what we went to.

[sph33r]

The whole silk undergarment thing I'll try to avoid, got women on the flightline so I'll probably either be hit with a purse or a lawyers briefcase....
I feel the "everything on the ramp burns" phenomenon, work on black matte birds... The thin tan pants sounds good though, maybe I'll give it a go, worst case scenario I send out a few cv's:rolleyes:

[dixi188]

I'd go for cotton rather then any synthetic material. Always found it more comfortable in the heat.

[sph33r]

Well, thanks to your info, it looks like I pushed it through the boss, and his boss.... so whats left is to find the clothing and come up with a proposition that will work... Thanks guys!!