Almost two decades into its life, the largest passenger aircraft model in the world, the Airbus 380 (A380), has begun to be scrapped well ahead of the usual date for this type of aircraft. Since a commercial aircraft is normally expected to remain in operation for 25 years .



However, as with other industries, the aviation sector, which has recently faced scrutiny for environmental issues, also has the challenge of responsible management of the waste generated, particularly at the end of life. usefulness of aircraft. But do you know exactly how an airplane is recycled? We tell you!



Recycle an airplane

According to Geoff Van Klaveren, an Middle East Mobile Number List aviation analyst at advisory firm IBA, only a few companies are capable of recycling a passenger plane as large as the A380, and the most experienced is Tarmac Aerosave, which has recycled more than 300 aircraft since its inception. foundation in 2007, in three sites in France and Spain.





Currently the company, partly owned by Airbus, has already recycled six A380s and is working on a seventh, which will be completed in March. But recycling such an aircraft is not easy, because there is a limited market for the parts, Van Klaveren points out.



So how do you recycle such a large aircraft and what happens to the resulting parts and materials? "Recycling begins by reusing and extending the life of the different components of the aircraft, as you do at home," says Lionel Roques, sales director of Tarmac Aerosave.



The first step is to remove some parts that will continue to be used on another aircraft. This includes engines, landing gear and part of the avionics, which refers to the electronic components of the aircraft that handle tasks such as communications or navigation. And, the parts are checked and resold with full traceability, guaranteeing their airworthiness.



In the case of A380 parts, they become replacement components for the existing A380 fleet. They can also be used for training purposes. “Sometimes we can give them to schools or training centers so new mechanics or students coming into the industry can train on real parts,” says Roques.



recycled-aircraft-turbine-

Manage aircraft at the end of their useful life

This part of the process usually lasts a few weeks, and then moves on to the waste management stage. “This is where we separate all the different materials, whether it's aluminum, titanium or copper, and make sure we send them to the appropriate recovery channels that will be reused,” says Roques.



Given the enormous dimensions of the A380 – which has around 120 tonnes of aluminum – waste management often takes months and is particularly challenging. Roques explains: “Because it is such a large aircraft, you need a large facility, and you need to adapt your tools and methods. You also have to be careful in terms of safety and work environment, because when I have a mechanic working on the second deck of the plane, that is really high.



Although there are no specific regulations that emphasize recycling an aircraft, Tarmac Aerosave indicates that its commitment to recycling is to recover at least more than 90% of the aircraft's weight.



«Of course [that during the recycling of an airplane], there will be some composite material or some dangerous goods that cannot be recycled, but we are talking about a small percentage, like 1% to 3%, which will be waste that will be treated or "They will go to the landfill."



Tarmac Aerosave.



Other ways to recycle an airplane

There are other ways to recycle an airplane, such as upcycling or, as Roques says, "removing iconic or interesting parts to use them as decorative elements." Late last year, Airbus did exactly that in a bid to raise money for charity and auctioned off hundreds of parts from a former Emirates A380.



This has not only been well received by aviation enthusiasts who have seen the opportunity to acquire and collect aircraft parts ranging from doorstops, seat belts, handrails and exit signs, to bulky items such as entire rows of seats. , stairs, beverage carts and engine parts. Therefore, they also allow the useful life of aircraft parts to be extended, which would otherwise end up in landfills.