Probably the most misunderstood thing in all of aviation is speed tape. Passengers see what looks like ‘duct tape’ on their plane, and they worry whether it will hold together. The plane doesn’t look safe and first impressions over safety matter right now with aviation safety top of mind given the issues we’ve seen with the Boeing 737 MAX 9 door plug, air traffic control mishaps, and pilot error over the past year and a half.
Photos like this one represent nervous passengers, and airlines making a poor impression, even though safety hasn’t been compromised. For 100 years aviation safety has been both a practice of continuous improvement, driving down risk, and of managing perceptions.
Well, it was fun while it lasted. Let's hope that duct tape holds @AmericanAir. Gulp. pic.twitter.com/3xuNKqm5QD
— Brian Dear (@Brian_Dear) June 26, 2024
These sorts of images scare passengers, but this isn’t duct tape. It is actually aluminum pressure-sensitive tape that can stick to an aircraft’s fuselage or wing at high speeds.
It is used in aviation for minor, temporary repairs on aircraft. It has high resistance to weather conditions and extreme temperatures. And its use is strictly regulated. In general, it is for temporary fixes until a more permanent repair can be made, often within a few days.
The location and nature of the damage on an aircraft determines whether use of speed tape is appropriate, consistent with FAA guidelines and the aircraft manufacturer’s structural repair manual. Speed tape is not indicated where it could potentially affect the structural integrity of the aircraft (or cause an aerodynamic issue).
So you’ll generally see it used for minor, non-structural damage such as covering minor dents or scratches that don’t affect structural integrity and securing loose objects such as a panel until they can be properly fixed.
There’s nothing wrong with this plane, in the sense that it’s perfectly airworthy. But every time passengers see something like this they’re shaken, and they worry about how well managed and maintained the airline they’re flying is.
Here’s one that looks pretty bad on the ground in Albuquerque prior to boarding. The forward fuselage is the part of the aircraft’s body where the cockpit is located. It’s the plane’s “first impression” – and this one doesn’t make a very good one.
Pressure-sensitive tape dates to the 1840s, though of course the tape used later at the dawn of aviation (masking tape) wouldn’t be used on an aircraft. Duct tape was developed during World War Two. Technology has continued to evolve, but popular understanding of it – in aviation and beyond – often lags. It wouldn’t hurt for airline employees themselves to be better educated, so that they could proactively explain it to customers.
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That last picture does look terrible. But you are right about explaining such things to passengers, Gary. I did suggest to some airlines (who blew me off) that rather than infantilizing passengers by telling them nothing, they proactively explain some basics about the aviation experience. How planes fly, what happens if there is an incident, and I would now add a few things like this taping all could be part of a brief handout. Granted this information is all available if one looks and not everybody reads even simple material. Still, some might pay attention.
At the least making an effort could help reduce passenger fears and perhaps on-board incidents. It’s a bit like a study out a couple of years ago that found the best way for surgeons not to be sued was to spend a little time with their patients before the operation. Then they would go over what would be done and the possible outcomes. The patients learned that they were in the hands of human beings doing their best, connected with them in ways that hadn’t happened before, and felt much more comfortable over the procedures.
My slant on the issue of aircraft damage comes from a different direction. I am married to am A&P, so if I see anything that looks the least bit off it’s taken a pic and show it to hubby. Only time this ever happened was some steam in the middle of a window. I snapped it and got the opinion I suspected, no concern.
Reading some of these comments, the grammar and spelling is so bad it makes me wonder if people are even getting past the 6th grade much less understanding basic aviation concepts.
Bad optics. Leaves a bad impression.
@Randy “Bad optics. Leaves a bad impression.” Say to me, “do you want to fly in one of these taped up (but safe) planes or have us cancel your flight?” I like the yes to flying optics.
Proper repairs should be done before an aircraft is allowed to fly. No exceptions – people’s lives are more important than the bottom line.
Duck tape was developed in WWII for deck cargo on freighters. It was called “duck” tape because it shed water like a duck.
I would love to be the tape guy, knowing people are watching me in ignorant horror.
Sounds like Bill Board is a real dipshit!!
You worry about spelling and grammar? What a dumb Ass you are!!
Get with the program mister….and get your head out of your Ass.
Sounds like a lot of aviation fan boys chiming in. As an A&P I can assure you that speed tape is installed only to prevent 300+ knot winds from lifting up damaged surfaces under the direction of maintenance control and the engineering department. It’s an aluminum tape not duct tape and isn’t used for structural repairs. The aircraft in this article probably experienced hail damage.
For those that left comments along the lines of “Proper repairs should be done before an aircraft is allowed to fly. No exceptions”. Well this isn’t the 1970’s and airlines don’t have maintenance personnel at all airports and utilize contract maintenance with limited resources at bases without their own maintainers.
So if you want to raise the bar, are you prepared for the additional costs that the carriers will incur and pass on to the consumer? I don’t think you want that, so temporary repairs are made off station and placed on a MEL, CDL or NEF and the permanent repairs are usually done within weeks once the jet goes into hangar maintenance.
A lot of hysteria over nothing.
One will see this tape used on aircraft surfaces made of composite material to protect from moisture intrusion when the surfaces paint has been damaged or chipped off. A painted surface is required to protect the composite material, and a paint damage repair can be deferred for a period of time.
“Duck tape was developed in WWII for deck cargo on freighters. It was called ‘duck’ tape because it shed water like a duck.” Duck tape was used prior to WWI and was made from cotton duck fabric. The term “duck” comes from the Dutch “doek,” meaning a linen canvas. Duck tape appeared in the OED in 1899, while duct tape showed up in 1965.
@mojavedc10, well said. I was on a one-hour RJ flight home from ORD when the pilot announced how long the flight would be. When he mentioned the altitude, I knew (and later confirmed with him) there was a problem with pressurization and the plane was going to my home airport where it could get serviced. I imagine some passengers might find this a concern if they knew, despite it having no risk. I was happy to get home.
save it for duct taping the misbehaved passengers
Fly new planes instead that don’t need it
Not a fan of any tape on a planes exterior
I looked up the history of duck tape and duct tape at ppmindustries. Duck tape predates duct tape and is named for the duck cotton canvas it was made out of. A version of it was made during World War II by Johnson and Johnson for war use. It was not called duct tape. After World War II, a similar tape, gray in color to blend in with it’s use, was made for air conditioning ducts. That was the first duct tape. It spread widely, probably due to more people getting air conditioning which was also driven by more people moving to warmer climates and higher wages.
Scientifically designed, special Pressure-sensitive aluminum tape put on an aircraft by a $10 ramp rat gives me zero confidence. I’ll take the next flight.
PS
@Doug Moore, call your AA sponsor.
I worked for a major airline in ground ops for 30 years. The standing joke is that when contract aircraft maintenance is called at a non-maintenance hanger city , they arrive with ….duct tape, a screwdriver and a Flashlight. (You’d be surprised how a plane can be patched until it arrives at a hub or complete maintenance hanger airport facility downline.)
David R Miller you are ethically and morally right. But you are also wrong. This is the United States. Profit is everything in this country. Bottom line is more important than lives. Grow up people. Open your eyes. Sorry I had to say this.
I was on a plane once, and saw a spoiler flap had some duct tape holding it on. It didn’t make me feel safe. I had to stair at that flap the entire flight out my window.
Stan S, my comment is not a complaint about spelling and grammar, it is about education, the lack of which is often called the “dumbing down” of a population. That is my concern, it should be yours too. I’ll refrain from returning any rude insults or name calling…
This is like the “600 miles an hour” tape used to patch bullet holes in helicopters in Viet Nam. This is more durable than duct tape. It just looks like duct tape.
As you were..
For those who see such things and feel “unsafe”, please consider: No maintenance worker (contracted or otherwise) wants to sit in a docket explaining why they did an inadequate or unsafe procedure to fix a problem that resulted in injury and death to people onboard the plane. No pilots will accept an aircraft that they believe to be unsafe to fly (if for no other reason than that their own precious life is at risk as well as the lives of their passengers and fellow crewmembers). The people that maintain and fly aircraft are professionals who are trained in their jobs to a degree that would likely surprise the vast majority of travelers – far more trained than your average taxi or bus driver. They’re human so they’re not perfect (who is?). But to think that they would do a slipshod job, putting the lives of others and their personal future in danger, is laughable.
My aditude towards flying is #1 The pilot doesn’t want to die, #2 If the plane did crash, It won’t hurt long.
Jerome Dawson, like the guys (and there were more than one) who failed to lubricate the jack screw that caused the crash of Alaska Air Flight 261?
More of a chance dying in a car accident on the way to the airport then dying in a plane crash.
Interesting how some posters here are giving grief to those whom think that maintenance crews should be doing more to fix airline craft properly before they head out on flights,which I do think that this should be done because what if there were to be accidents that occured with the aircraft because maintenance crews were being slack with their jobs in repairing aircrafts. Any one whom gives crap to any one whom is making proper comments with common sense behind them about wanting to see Airline aircrafts being fixed properly before they go out on their maiden voyages should have their heads examined because there is nothing wrong with wanting to travel on an airline aircraft that has been through all the proper checks & inspections before it’s allowed to fly at all because over the last few years there have indeed been several accidents that have occured due to faulty work and that shouldn’t happen at all