Aircraft swaps: questions for operations control

When an aircraft becomes unavailable, a swap may look attractive on the schedule. That proposal is only a starting point: check the replacement aircraft’s location, technical status and ability to operate the intended service.

Consider equipment, configuration, loading, performance, maintenance requirements, crew qualification, station support and downstream rotations. Each specialist desk should confirm the items it owns.

Communicate the proposed change to affected teams, retain the assumptions and decisions, and monitor for further disruption. An unconfirmed swap must not be presented as an operationally approved solution.

Use a Dispatch Deck recovery exercise to compare options and explain the consequences and remaining unknowns.