Japan Airlines and French maintenance-drone maker Donecle have begun Japan’s first verification of fully autonomous drones for aircraft exterior inspections, using the Iris GVI system at JAL’s hangar facilities. The trial focuses on replacing some high-altitude manual checks on aircraft already covered by manufacturer maintenance manuals, with the aim of improving safety for mechanics and reducing inspection time.
The project has been under development since March, when operator training and procedures began, while live-aircraft comparisons between drone images and conventional visual inspections have run since late June. JAL is using the indoor hangar environment for the test because outdoor drone operations remain restricted near airports.
Iris GVI flies autonomously with obstacle detection and image analysis, capturing standardised high-resolution images that can be used to map and measure defects more precisely. JAL is also looking at broader maintenance applications if the trial proves successful, including lightning-strike checks and paint-condition monitoring, alongside potential use at other airports subject to regulatory coordination.
The initiative sits within a wider maintenance-efficiency push as airlines face future manpower constraints and pressure to free engineers for predictive work rather than labour-intensive visual inspections. No fleetwide rollout timeline has been disclosed.