Plans and coordinates aircraft maintenance production across Gamston and Malta Part-145 facilities. Responsibilities include preparing work packs, balancing maintenance tracks, coordinating materials, tooling, contractors, documentation, capacity, reporting, risk registers, and audit readiness. The role also supports engineering project management by tracking milestones, resources, budgets, and cross-functional deliverables while maintaining communication with Fleet Management, Maintenance Control, stores, procurement, and engineering leadership.
The Production Planner provides dedicated tactical and administrative support directly to the Maintenance Manager. Based at Gamston, the role operates globally, supporting DEA Part-145 operations worldwide with a focus on maintaining operational efficiency across our main base at Gamston and maintenance facility in Malta.
The core focus of the role is to optimise maintenance track balancing and output. This is achieved primarily by identifying and securing opportunities to enhance pre-input and post-output planning and processes, thereby enabling track leads to optimise maintenance within their respective tracks.
Operating within a fast-paced Part-145 environment, this position takes ownership of critical maintenance production activities - including material staging, documentation control, track allocation, and resource readiness. By independently managing these preparatory tasks, the Production Planner ensures that all work packs, tooling, and parts are fully prepared before an aircraft arrives on dock. This directly absorbs tactical preparation demands from the Maintenance Manager, freeing them to focus on overarching production control, operational leadership, and strategic capacity growth.
Crucially, while Maintenance Control manages the interface with commercial flight schedules, the Production Planner works closely with Maintenance Control, the Fleet Manager, and the wider Production Planning team to ensure that planned maintenance inputs translate smoothly into hangar floor readiness and seamless execution.
In addition to core planning responsibilities, this position holds a secondary mandate of assisting in Engineering project management. In this capacity, the individual will lead and deliver engineering projects, working closely with the engineering leadership team.
Note: this is a new role and so the job description is subject to change and development.
Key Responsibilities
1. Cross-Functional Coordination and Planning Integration
- Take ownership of translating long-range fleet forecasts and tactical inputs from Fleet Management/Maintenance Control into actionable production plans within the Part-145 facility.
- Lead internal facility preparation with track leads, stores and procurement, so ensuring tracks are ready to receive aircraft upon arrival.
- Collaborate closely with the wider Production Planning team to monitor workload distribution across tracks, proactively identifying and mitigating capacity risks to maintain balanced resource allocation and operational flow across all bases.
- Identify and execute opportunities to refine pre-input and post-output processes, eliminating operational bottlenecks to allow track leads to focus entirely on maintenance execution within the track.
- In consultation with Maintenance Controllers and Fleet Managers, take receipt of approved work orders and convert them into comprehensive work packs for the Part-145 facility, ensuring all required task cards, AD/SB documentation, and engineering orders are verified prior to aircraft induction.
- Optimise maintenance scheduling through data analysis to refine timelines and provide actionable feedback to the Fleet Manager, while allocating track capacity and tooling to support continuous operations.
- Oversee daily aircraft progress on the hangar floor, proactively identifying and mitigating timeline or capacity risks, and liaising with the Maintenance Manager and Maintenance Control on recovery strategies if delays occur.
- Drive the provisioning process by acting as the primary liaison with Stores and Procurement, ensuring all routine materials, consumables, and rotable spares are physically positioned at the track prior to aircraft induction.
- Manage the allocation and availability of specialised tooling and ground support equipment required for upcoming tasks, resolving shortfalls independently where possible.
- Oversee the scheduling and facility access for external specialist services required during maintenance inputs, such as non-destructive testing or on-site engine support, ensuring third-party contractors are booked and ready in strict alignment with track timelines.
- Maintain authoritative oversight of production planning records through daily administrative data entry in ACMP or Veryon Tracking+, ensuring the department remains in a state of continuous audit readiness.
- Ensure all preparatory planning activities strictly align with internal policy management, AS9100 standards, and EASA / UK CAA Part-145 regulations.
- Conduct the primary technical review of completed work packs, rectifying missing signatures or errors prior to final Maintenance Manager sign-off and return to CAMO.
- Provide secretarial and administrative support for weekly pre-input and post-output maintenance planning meetings, including scheduling stakeholders, compiling preparatory data, taking minutes, and tracking action items to maintain departmental alignment.
- Administer the internal KPIs/PI systems to track the progress and effectiveness of scheduled maintenance and AOG recovery.
- Produce and analyse daily and weekly production reports, presenting actionable metrics to the Engineering Leadership staff.
- Administer the DEA Part 145 Operational Risk Register to ensure that risks are tolerable, treated or transferred as appropriate to ensure that risks are managed to As Low As Reasonably Practicable (ALARP).
- Undertake engineering project management to develop and execute engineering initiatives, facility improvements, and specific capability upgrades across the Gamston and Malta bases.
- Administer project plans, track milestones, manage resources, and ensure deliverables are met on time and within agreed budgets.
- Coordinate cross-functional activities with internal engineering departments, external suppliers, and senior management to advance projects alongside routine maintenance operations without causing disruptions.
Knowledge & Expertise
Essential Requirements
- Strong organisational skills with the ability to manage high volumes of documentation and data accurately.
- Ability to read and understand basic engineering documentation, task cards, and Service Bulletins to effectively compile work packs.
- Proactive, hands-on approach with a high tolerance for ambiguity and the ability to adapt to rapidly changing priorities in the maintenance organisation.
- Proven ability to work collaboratively across multi-disciplinary teams, particularly integrating with long-range planners, Maintenance Control, and hangar maintenance teams.
- Previous experience in a technical records, maintenance planning, or engineering administrative support role within a Part-145 or CAMO environment (or equivalent).
- Familiarity with aviation maintenance management systems and compliance software.
- Experience or formal qualifications in project management delivering engineering projects.
- Understanding of UK CAA / EASA civil aviation regulations (or equivalent).
- Prior experience acting as a coordinator or technical assistant to senior engineering management.
- Familiarity with AS9100 compliance and internal aviation policy management.
Skills Profile
- Collaborative Communicator: Exceptional interpersonal skills with the ability to build strong working relationships with Fleet Managers, Maintenance Control, and hangar staff.
- Detail-Oriented: Methodical and precise when compiling work packs, auditing data, and tracking critical components.
- Adaptable Planner: Capable of balancing long-term scheduled inputs with dynamic operational shifts on the hangar floor.
- Proactive Problem Solver: Naturally anticipates bottlenecks in material supply or hangar track capacity, resolving issues before they impact production.
About
DEA and our sister company ESAO are a world leading specialist technology-led provider of complex aerial data acquisition services. A pioneer in airborne data gathering, DEA/ESAO use ground-breaking techniques and the most advanced and innovative technologies in the industry to help you answer complex questions and make informed decisions in real time.
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