Sean Broderick covers aviation safety, MRO, and the hardware side of the airline business from Aviation Week Network's Washington, D.C. office.
Broderick's aviation career started in 1991, working for Airbus in Toulouse. His industry experience includes four years with an aviation consultancy, where he helped launch a U.S. Part 121 carrier; 12 years with the American Association of Airport Executives, where he served as editor of Airport Magazine; and 20 years in full- and part-time roles with Aviation Week writing primarily about safety and the aftermarket.
Broderick was named the 2020 Aerospace Journalist of the Year by the Aerospace Media Awards. He also shared in a 2020 Neal Award for Best News Coverage with Aviation Week Network colleagues. Broderick and Aviation Week colleague John Croft shared the 2015 Flight Safety International Cecil A. Brownlow Publication Award recognizing "significant contributions by journalists to aviation safety awareness."
He graduated from James Madison University with a B.S. in Communications ('91) and earned an M.S. in Integrated Marketing Communications ('13) from West Virginia University.
FAA in early July quietly issued the long-awaited Advisory Circular (AC) on developing the newly required repair station training program. At O&M presstime, the 49-page AC's issuance hadn't been announced with a usually customary "AC-available" notice in the Federal Register.
The desire for decreased costs and increased efficiency in an airline maintenance operation often leads to the hangar, where quests for increased intervals, decreased labor costs and faster turntimes seemingly never end. But there is plenty to be gained at the front end of the maintenance chain as well. Operators taking the time to look are finding ways to improve their maintenance control and short-term planning efforts.
Maintenance providers looking to digital documentation as a way to boost efficiency and save money won't be disappointed in the amount of electronic data available. From reference documentation provided by OEMs to customizable versions of maintenance manuals and related documentation created by third-party vendors, digital maintenance libraries are easy to build. The key to taking advantage of being paperless isn't having the content, it's being able to manage it.
