Post-Corrosion Repair Thickness Measurements Using Lamb-Wave Technology: An Aviation MRO Case Study

Routine maintenance of commercial aircraft requires reliable detection and repair of corrosion to ensure structural integrity. Post-repair inspections are commonly performed using manual ultrasonic point measurements of residual thickness, a process that is time-intensive and constrained by limitations in accuracy, repeatability, and cost. This study reports initial results of a non-contact, ultrasonic Lamb-wave-based inspection method, implemented with a mobile prototype system. The prototype integrates scanning, data acquisition, and reporting into a mobile workstation to support automated corrosion-repair inspections. Field trials validated the underlying measurement principle, while highlighting challenges when subsurface structures interfere with skin-only thickness evaluation.