29.05.2026
By Ivor Pope, Production Manager
Maintaining Airlander is unlike maintaining a conventional aircraft. We spoke to someone who has firsthand experience of this – Ivor Pope, our Production Manager.
29.05.2026
By Ivor Pope, Production Manager
Maintaining Airlander is unlike maintaining a conventional aircraft. We spoke to someone who has firsthand experience of this – Ivor Pope, our Production Manager.
The HAV production team maintaining the Airlander prototype
Rather than relying entirely on hangars, Airlander is moored outdoors on a mast, it has the ability to move around the mast as the wind direction changes (a feature that stems from the airship technology used).
For airships, the mast is seen as a temporary holding position before hangar entry, for Airlander it is the primary maintenance environment. Inspection, servicing, and rectification work will predominantly be carried out on the mast.
A key part of enabling this approach has come from outside traditional aviation. We have taken inspiration from industries already experienced in complex access challenges, particularly the wind turbine sector.
Using electric ascender systems and rope-access techniques allows our technicians to move around the aircraft efficiently, accessing external surfaces, rigid structures, and internal hull spaces with far greater flexibility than conventional platforms provide. This means that maintenance is no longer a series of isolated tasks, but an efficient system of inspection and intervention.
When undertaking maintenance on the prototype we didn’t reinvent the process, we looked to industry and integrated qualified IRATA (Industrial Rope Access Trade Association) specialists to help establish the foundations of our capability. From there, we adopted a train-the-trainer model, allowing that expertise to be developed internally and scaled alongside the organisation.
From a production perspective, this is critical. This gives us greater control over training, competency, scalability, and long-term operational capability.
Most importantly, safety is not a barrier to this way of working — it is a framework that enables it. Every new process, access method, and maintenance activity is designed around safe, repeatable operation.
We are already seeing opportunities to refine equipment configurations, improve task sequencing, and better integrate human factor considerations into this type of operation. When I consider the future of maintenance for this aircraft, I do not see rows of vehicles waiting for hangar space. I see aircraft remaining at the mast, being inspected, maintained, and returned to readiness with minimal disruption.
We are exploring ways to further improve efficiency and accessibility with the latest technology, including augmented reality eyewear that could connect maintainers directly with remote subject matter experts. We are also looking at innovative materials and support systems that improve comfort, protection, and ease of access during maintenance activities.
I am excited to see what the future of technology holds, and to see how we can apply it to the maintenance of Airlander – an aircraft we will see in our skies in the near-future.