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Korean Air develops drone swarm technology to inspect aircraft

Airline says pilotless vehicles can reduce out-of-service time by 60%

Korean Air plans to use drone swarms to inspect aircraft. (Photo: Korean Airlines)

One of the latest applications for drones is inspecting aircraft for damage and wear. Korean Air is taking the concept to the next level by using multiple robot aircraft to make the work faster and easier.

The airline says it has developed technology that for the first time allows a swarm of drones to inspect an aircraft exterior. Last week it demonstrated the concept on one of its aircraft inside a hangar in Seoul. Four unmanned aerial vehicles have been programmed to simultaneously take photos of preplanned areas of a plane. If one of the drones fails to operate, the system is configured to automatically complete the mission using the remaining mini-aircraft.

Drone inspections are attracting interest from airlines, maintenance and repair organizations and leasing companies. Aviation safety rules require airlines to periodically conduct visual checks of the fuselage. Manually checking the upper section of a large plane is challenging and requires lift equipment. Drones can conduct the inspections more safely, with increased accuracy and speed, while eliminating subjectivity, developers say.

Drone inspections can reduce the amount of time an aircraft is out of service, helping airlines maintain flight schedules and revenues. Using pilotless aircraft after a lightning strike, for example, could allow an airline to quickly determine if there is any damage without having to pull a plane into a hangar, according to maintenance experts.


Korean Air said a drone swarm can visually inspect an aircraft in about four hours compared to 10 hours for human inspections. The drones, equipped with high-performance cameras, can identify objects up to 1 millimeter in size, allowing for detection of tiny defects that can’t be seen from above with the naked eye.

The inspection data is shared through the cloud, enabling employees to easily check inspection results anywhere and anytime. The airline has also applied a collision-avoidance system and geo-fencing to maintain safety distances from surrounding facilities and prevent drones from breaking away from the mission area.

Korean Air said it will work to perfect safety and worker interfaces, stabilize operations and increase inspection accuracy through continuous trials before officially deploying inspection drones next year.

Another company focused on drone inspection of aircraft is Mainblades. In August, the drone developer conducted a fully automated outdoor airport inspection of an Airbus A330 commercial aircraft at an active airfield. It was the first time such an inspection has been conducted in Europe, according to the company.


The inspection took place at an air base in Woensdrecht, the Netherlands.

Mainblades currently operates inside hangars due to airport limitations regarding the use of drones, but said it continues to validate the case for outdoor airport inspections.

“If an aircraft lands and it is damaged on the way, for example by lightning or birds, it must now first go to a closed location such as a hangar. That way you lose a lot of time. Besides this, hangar space is expensive to rent and not always available,” which makes open-air inspections an attractive alternative, Dejan Borota, co-founder and director of Mainblades, said in a blog post on the company’s website.

The outdoor test enabled the company to identify obstacles and necessary procedures so it can build an operation that is scalable worldwide, he said.

Automated inspections could be useful during lease transitions, said Jack Bos, technical director at TrueNoord, an aircraft leasing company, in a video of the outdoor inspection event. Inspectors typically check aircraft to make sure all damage repairs are correctly recorded, but that can be difficult to do on top of the fuselage, tail or wings, he explained.

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Eric Kulisch

Eric is the Supply Chain and Air Cargo Editor at FreightWaves. An award-winning business journalist with extensive experience covering the logistics sector, Eric spent nearly two years as the Washington, D.C., correspondent for Automotive News, where he focused on regulatory and policy issues surrounding autonomous vehicles, mobility, fuel economy and safety. He has won two regional Gold Medals and a Silver Medal from the American Society of Business Publication Editors for government and trade coverage, and news analysis. He was voted best for feature writing and commentary in the Trade/Newsletter category by the D.C. Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. He won Environmental Journalist of the Year from the Seahorse Freight Association in 2014 and was the group's 2013 Supply Chain Journalist of the Year. In December 2022, Eric was voted runner up for Air Cargo Journalist by the Seahorse Freight Association. As associate editor at American Shipper Magazine for more than a decade, he wrote about trade, freight transportation and supply chains. He has appeared on Marketplace, ABC News and National Public Radio to talk about logistics issues in the news. Eric is based in Vancouver, Washington. He can be reached for comments and tips at ekulisch@freightwaves.com