Managing Organization Aircraft
Summary
Each aircraft in your fleet has a full record in FlightSense: basic info, equipment configuration, Hobbs and Tach meter logs, maintenance and inspection records, ARROW airworthiness documents, squawk write-ups, flight activity, and attached files. All of this lives in a single detail view you open from the Aircraft table in the Admin Portal.
Who this is for
- Owners and Admins — add, edit, and remove aircraft; manage all records
- Chief Instructors and Assistant Chiefs — same access for oversight of instructor authorizations and compliance
- Line instructors and students see aircraft in context (flight logs, dispatch) but do not manage the fleet
If you don't see aircraft management controls, your role doesn't include fleet management.
The Aircraft table
From the Admin Portal sidebar, click Aircraft. The table lists every aircraft in your fleet. Columns are Tail Number (click to open the detail overlay), Make, Model, Series, Year, Last Updated, and Status (a colored dot — green for no issues, yellow for a warning, red for grounded).
Above the table, a search bar and two filter chips let you limit the list:
- Airworthy — aircraft with no grounded flag
- Grounded — aircraft marked out of service
Both filters are on by default. Deselecting both hides all rows.
Adding an aircraft
1. Click Add Aircraft
The Add Aircraft button is in the top right of the Aircraft view. If it is disabled, your role doesn't include aircraft management.
2. Fill in aircraft details
A dialog opens. At the top is an image upload area — drag a photo in or click to browse. Images appear next to the tail number throughout the portal and in the pilot apps.
Basic fields:
| Field | Notes |
|---|---|
| Tail Number * | FAA registration (e.g., N12345). Required. Auto-uppercased. |
| Make * | Manufacturer (e.g., Cessna, Piper, Cirrus). Required. |
| Model * | Specific model (e.g., 172, PA-28-181, SR22). Required. |
| Series (Optional) | Model variant letter(s), e.g., S for a 172S. |
| Year (Optional) | Year of manufacture. |
| Registration Number (Optional) | From the FAA Certificate of Registration. |
Aircraft Configuration: A set of checkboxes that describe the aircraft's equipment and operating status. These determine which inspections and ARROW documents are required on this aircraft's compliance record.
| Flag | Default | Effect when checked |
|---|---|---|
| Instruction for hire | On | Requires a 100-Hour inspection record |
| Transponder equipped | On | Requires a Transponder inspection record |
| IFR capable | Off | Requires a Pitot-Static / Altimeter inspection record |
| Multi-engine | Off | Adds a second Tach meter (per-engine) in the Meters tab |
| Operates internationally | Off | Requires a Radio Station License in ARROW compliance |
3. Save
Click Save. The aircraft appears immediately in the table and is available for instructor authorizations, flight logging, and dispatch.
Opening an aircraft detail
Click the tail number link in the table to open the full-screen aircraft detail overlay. A toolbar at the top shows the aircraft avatar and tail number. On the left is a navigation rail with six tabs. Tabs with open issues show a colored dot: red for a grounding squawk or expired record, yellow for a warning.
| Tab | What it contains |
|---|---|
| Flight Activity | All flights (dispatched and manually logged) associated with this aircraft |
| Meters | Current Hobbs and Tach values derived from the reading log; Add Reading to record a new entry |
| Maintenance | Inspection records (Annual, 100-Hour, Transponder, Pitot-Static, ELT) and Airworthiness Directives |
| Squawks | Open and resolved maintenance write-ups |
| Compliance | ARROW airworthiness documents: Airworthiness Certificate, Registration, Operating Limitations / POH, Weight & Balance, Radio Station License |
| Documents | Files attached to any compliance or maintenance record for this aircraft |
For squawk filing and lifecycle, see Filing and Resolving Squawks.
At the bottom of the nav rail, Edit Aircraft and Delete Aircraft buttons let you update or remove the record.
Editing an aircraft
In the aircraft detail overlay, click Edit Aircraft in the nav rail. The same dialog as Add Aircraft opens, pre-filled with the current values. Update any field and click Save.
Common edits:
- Grounding / returning to service — toggle Aircraft Status between Grounded and Airworthy
- Configuration changes — check or uncheck equipment flags if the aircraft is retrofitted or certified for a new category; compliance card requirements update automatically
Grounding an aircraft
An aircraft set to Grounded generates a warning on any upcoming scheduled events it is assigned to. The warning is informational — existing events are not cancelled.
A grounded aircraft also cannot be checked out through dispatch. Any event scheduled for it will show a blocked status until the aircraft returns to service.
To return the aircraft to service, open Edit Aircraft and toggle Aircraft Status back to Airworthy, then save.
Grounding is a simple on/off state with no notes or reason field. If you need a reason on record, file a squawk — squawks are the narrative audit trail for maintenance write-ups.
Deleting an aircraft
Click Delete Aircraft in the nav rail. FlightSense asks for confirmation. Deleting removes the aircraft from the fleet listing permanently, but all historical flight logs that reference it retain the tail number and make/model as a snapshot.
What happens after you add an aircraft
- Instructors can be authorized against it in their Qualifications tab
- It becomes selectable in the dispatch flow and the flight log picker
- Its maintenance and compliance records are tracked from the detail overlay
Common issues
| Problem | Cause | Solution |
|---|---|---|
| Add Aircraft is disabled | Role doesn't include fleet management | Only Owners, Admins, and Chief/Assistant Chief Instructors can add aircraft. |
| Tail number already in use | Duplicate record or aircraft already in fleet | Search the table for the tail number. Keep one record and delete the other. |
| Image upload fails | File format or size issue | Use PNG or JPG. Very large files may be rejected — compress or crop before uploading. |
| Wrong inspections required | Configuration flags not set correctly | Open Edit Aircraft and check the correct equipment flags. Compliance card requirements update immediately after saving. |
| Deletion confirmation mentions flight logs | Logs reference this aircraft | You can still delete. Historical logs are unaffected. |
How this works
Equipment flags and required records
When you save an aircraft with specific configuration flags set, FlightSense automatically determines which inspection and ARROW records are required for that aircraft. The Maintenance tab shows inspection cards only for applicable types — for example, a single-engine VFR-only trainer without a transponder would show Annual, ELT Inspection, and ELT Battery but not 100-Hour, Transponder, or Pitot-Static. If you upgrade the aircraft later (add a transponder, certify it for IFR), update the configuration flags and the required records update immediately.
Aircraft authorizations
Under FAA Part 141, instructors must be authorized on the specific aircraft they instruct in. Add aircraft to your fleet first, then authorize instructors from the instructor's Qualifications tab. See Managing Instructor Qualification Records.
Grounded aircraft and dispatch
A grounded aircraft cannot be checked out through the dispatch flow. Pilots will see a blocked status when attempting to check out an event scheduled for a grounded aircraft. Resolve the underlying issue, file any relevant squawks, then return the aircraft to Airworthy to restore dispatch access.
Removing vs. taking out of service
When an aircraft leaves your fleet permanently (sold, retired, written off), delete it. Historical records are preserved.
When an aircraft is temporarily unavailable, mark it Grounded instead. That keeps the record and its compliance history intact while blocking new use.