Airlines get ready to resume regular take-offs, Cleans up bugs and bird nests

France: As airlines that had to ground 80% of their fleet last year due to the pandemic are getting ready to get back up in the air, French airlines are already checking for fungus, bugs, and bird nests.

An Air France plane was brought to a hangar from Orly Airport to get cleaned up. It will soon be making seven flights a day as Europe is enjoying summer. Many travellers are keen to get sunny Mediterranean destinations, reported AFP.

Planes were receiving regular maintenance during the past year, but they are not ready to carry 200 passengers per flight. Vincent Rigaudie, one of the people responsible for preparing Air France aircraft said that there are a bunch of systems that were shut down. "We have to retest and recheck them".

Other than cleanliness, attention has to be paid to all the engine systems and oil levels in the hydraulics as well.

Depending on where the plane is parked, tarps put on to protect it can pose challenges with humidity. Technician Julien Breuzard told AFP that the tarps are to capture moisture that can stay inside the motor for the entire time the plane is parked.

Rigaudie said that birds love to nest on parked planes, especially on the wings at the level of ailerons. The droppings of birds are corrosive and can be a problem for machines. Birds do not need much room to get inside the plane. Other common problems are fuel tanks being contaminated by fungus and insects getting inside airspeed sensors and blocking them, said the AFP report.

Visual inspection using a micro-camera, a computer system that detects malfunctions, and a drone to check the areas high up are also used to make sure that the plane is fit for flying.

Planes parked at Orly Airport will need 200-300 hours of work before taking flight, suggests report.