Behind the scenes: Why Managing an Aircraft is Harder than it Looks

When we launched the Aviation Perspectives with C.A.C. Podcast, our goal was simple: to bring forward the voices and experiences of different aviation professionals and Authorities. We wanted to highlight the variety of roles in aviation, share lessons learned, and encourage reflection across the industry.  

Along the way, we’ve had the privilege of working with many dedicated people. We’ve also encountered one of the common challenges in aviation — the difficulty of aligning commitments and deadlines. 

This struck me because producing a podcast, like many things in aviation, looks simple from the outside. Yet behind every episode are countless steps: reaching out to guests, conducting interviews, editing, sending drafts for review, creating graphics and posts, cutting a trailer, writing newsletters, and uploading across multiple platforms. Every task is dependent on the one before it, and if a piece is delayed, the entire schedule shifts. 

Last time someone missed a deadline, I got frustrated — then I thought: hhhmmm… this feels familiar… oh yeah, it’s like with Aircraft Management. Lots of people think it’s easy and there’s nothing to it. 

In aviation, the public focus is usually on Pilots, Engineers, and Cabin Crew. But behind the scenes, another critical role ensures that all of these professionals can perform their duties safely: the Aircraft Manager or CAMO Engineer. Just recently, Air Canada cabin crew went on strike and that reminded me: 

✔️You can’t fly without pilots. 

✔️You can’t fly without cabin crew. 

✔️You can’t fly without a release to service from an AME. 

✔️And… you can’t fly without an airworthiness assessment from an Aircraft Manager or CAMO Engineer. 

(Isn’t that interesting? We’re all connected, and all essential). 

And that assessment — the one that enables everyone else to do their job — is a lot of work. 

Here’s just a snapshot of what goes into an Airworthiness Assessment by an Aircraft Management Company or CAMO: 

• Retrieve the flight activity 
• Update flight hours (FH) and flight cycles (FC) 
• Adjust the maintenance schedule accordingly 
• Coordinate task execution with flight schedules and maintenance slots (and if things don’t line up, you’re either hunting for another maintainer or shifting flights — neither option is fun ☹) 
• Track and evaluate reported defects from maintenance or crew, applying MELs, coordinating rectifications, digging into the AMM, or escalating to engineering/STC holders for instructions — and then updating the system so nothing gets lost 
• Open work orders, provide instructions, and ensure material/parts support are in place 
• Review STC instructions and amendments (MPDs, SBs, etc.) across airframe, engines, APU, propellers, landing gear… and update accordingly 
• Monitor Airworthiness Directives (same systems as above), apply them based on effectivity, and sometimes take immediate corrective actions that disrupt both flight and maintenance schedules (again… not fun ☹) 
• Manage quality audits and authority surveys 

This list could keep going, but you get the picture: there’s a lot more behind the curtain than people realize. 

Why everybody’s job depends on it 

That long list of tasks isn’t just “paperwork”. It’s hours of assessing, evaluating, researching, and updating….and why it’s important it’s because it’s what ensures that when a pilot shows up for duty, the aircraft is legally and safely airworthy. It’s what ensures that when maintenance signs a release, it’s based on up-to-date information. It’s what allows cabin crew to board passengers knowing the aircraft they’re working on is safe to fly. 

Without proper aircraft management, the system falls apart. Pilots can’t fly, engineers can’t sign off, and cabin crew can’t operate. Every role in aviation depends on that invisible layer of management and oversight. 

The same way a podcast looks simple until you realize the work behind it, Aircraft Management looks easy… until you see all the moving parts that need to align perfectly. 

 And maybe that’s the real takeaway: when the invisible work is done right, nobody notices. But when it isn’t, everyone feels it.

Annalisa

Aviation Specialist - Aircraft Management/CAMO - Aviation Training

Co-Author of "Introduction to Aircraft Management"