The SAE Guide to APU health management establishes the foundation for developing a successful APU health management program at any aircraft or APU operator, such as an airline, an OEM, an equipment supplier, or a military transport unit. This guide identifies the best practices for using an APU health management program to improve dispatch reliability and to satisfy Extended Operations (ETOPS) availability requirements.

Purpose

There have been many attempts to institute APU health management programs but most programs were modeled after the pre-existing main engine programs. These models often overlooked special considerations that are necessary to make an APU health management program successful. This report will identify the unique characteristics of a successful APU health management program and the best practices for establishing a system. The purpose of this report is to guide the development and use of a successful APU health management effort in a practical, cost effective method.

This report will:

• Identify the costs and benefits associated with developing an effective APU health management program

• Identify the best practices and technologies for developing and implementing an APU health management program

• Identify the best practices for using APU health management to prevent failures and disruptions to operations

• Identify a recommended collection of data, including recommended measurements and recommended events

The General Description in Section 3 is intended to provide a high level overview of the background and the current state of APU health management. The Costs and Benefits in Section 4 is intended to provide a high level overview of the costs and benefits associated with establishing an APU health management program. The Technical Requirements in Section 5 is intended to provide detailed information regarding best practices, recommended data collection and monitoring, maintenance correlation, and implementation.