AE6005 Apply with Aircraft Maintenance Assessment 2026: Landing Gear Network Analysis and Maintenance Management Report (Kingston University)

AE6005 Apply with Aircraft Maintenance (Kingston University): Maintenance Management Report 2026

This AE6005 assessment uses a main landing gear replacement as a small maintenance project. Students build an action-on-node network from the 14-activity task list, find the critical path and floats, turn it into a bar chart and resources diagram, explain how to shorten the job with four technicians, and then write short discussions on in-house versus outsourced maintenance and the A320 base check programme.

Table 1: Project Task List (Main Landing Gear Replacement)

The table lists each maintenance activity, the hours needed if one person works on it, the maximum number of people who can work on it at the same time, and its preceding activities. The figures are illustrative teaching estimates, not approved aircraft-specific task times.

Assessment Questions

Question 1a: Network Diagram (30 marks)

Tabulate the data and complete the “action on node” network diagram for the project, indicating the critical path and free float. Use the task durations in the “Hours” column (assume only one person works on each activity; do not divide the hours by the maximum number of people).

Question 1b: Sequenced Bar Chart and Resources Diagram (10 marks)

Analyse the network diagram produced for part 1a and produce a sequenced bar chart and a resources diagram against a time scale.

Question 2: Reducing the Project Duration (20 marks)

Briefly indicate and explain:

• What needs to be done to reduce the overall duration of a project.
• How the overall duration of this project could be reduced, assuming the maximum manpower available at any time is four persons.
• Whether the critical path changes, and what the changes are, if any.

No new diagrams are needed for this question; the reduction is explained in words.

Question 3: In-house vs Outsourced Maintenance (20 marks)

Compare and contrast in-house and outsourced maintenance options (300 words, plus or minus 10%).

Question 4: Airbus A320 Base Maintenance Checks (20 marks)

Discuss the primary types of base maintenance checks carried out on the Airbus A320 family of aircraft, with a brief description of each (500 words, plus or minus 10%).

Guidance Notes

• The network diagram, bar chart and resources diagram are produced in the “Network Analysis 4 Students” Excel workbook from the module’s Canvas page and pasted into the Word document (about two landscape pages). Separate Excel or picture files are not submitted.
• Printed diagrams must be legible, with sufficiently large font sizes.
• Free float sits at the right-hand end of each bar; there should be no free float at the start of a bar or between two tasks. Two bars may share one row if there is a gap between them.

Learning Outcomes

1. Demonstrate use of the graduate attributes to explore complex challenges in the field of aircraft maintenance management.
2. Demonstrate the ability to set goals and take action relating to personal development and future plans.

Marking Scheme

Submission Requirements

The written part is an analytical report of about 800 words with a stated word count, submitted as a single PDF through the Assignments section of Canvas. Work submitted up to a week late is capped at 40%. Generative AI may be used for the default purposes listed in the brief (such as structure, ideation and proofreading), and any use must be declared under the heading “Acknowledgement of GAI Contribution”.