British Airways (BA) is using a cutting-edge engineering system that uses real-time data to predict aircraft maintenance issues.

The digital technology will help the flag carrier of the UK to reduce delays and save the use of more than 900,000 pieces of paper a year.

The E-Logs platform, which forms part of BA’s £7 billion transformation investment over the next two years, will provide live performance information about all of BA’s 270 jets, allowing the airline to immediately spot potential problems and proactively fix them and reduce downtime.

It is replacing a costly and time-consuming paper-based system with an entirely automated process that makes it much easier for pilots and cabin crew to log issues.

Several specialist iPads will be placed on every aircraft which will allow the immediate transfer of data from the aircraft to engineers within seconds – before the aircraft arrives at its destination.

This means engineers can pre-order any required parts and resolve issues more quickly on arrival, reducing the amount of time planes are out of action.

The technology also allows BA to predict faults and pre-emptively correct them before they become an issue that might take an aircraft offline.

This includes cutting-edge machine learning, automation and AI across the operation, driving improvements from bookings to baggage handling and helping cut cancellations and delays.

Andy Best, chief technical officer at BA, said: “We’re using the latest technology to help ensure we continue delivering a consistently high standard of service for our customers – always with a focus on safety.

“Our investment in innovative tools like this means we can support our teams to identify and put solutions in place ahead of time.

“By replacing time-consuming manual processes with digital technology we are constantly improving the reliability of our aircraft fleet and as a result our customers’ experience.”

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