Jet Aviation has received approval from the Swiss Federal Office of Civil Aviation (FOCA) to use infrared thermography for non-destructive testing (NDT) in Basel. This is the company’s sixth NDT technique approved in Basel. The Basel NDT
shop was established in 1991 and further supports liquid penetrant, X-ray, magnetic particle, eddy current, and ultrasonic testing.
Used to detect heat or thermal energy emitted from an object, infrared thermography is a highly sensitive and reliable
method of non-destructive testing that converts heat energy to a temperature, which can then be depicted as
an image of temperature distribution. It is the same technology used in night vision goggles and is also
employed in medical science to detect irregularities such as cancer and chronic disease. In aviation, it is
typically applied to the airframe and components to test structural integrity.
Typically performed during scheduled maintenance, infrared thermography is used to detect delamination, defective bonding, and water ingress, as well as corrosion and material thinning. It is particularly well-suited for the inspection of composite materials.
