Case File 04
PlaneSight
Boeing · Aircraft Maintenance · Product UI · Enterprise Software
Designing the dashboards and workflows that helped maintenance teams see aircraft status, assign mechanics and manage work more clearly.
PlaneSight helped teams monitor aircraft maintenance, understand current status and coordinate work across aircraft and mechanics.
Working alongside a lead designer who focused on research, synthesis and direction, I owned a substantial portion of the UI, translating that direction into dashboards, workflows, interactions and reusable components.
Company
Boeing
Role
UI Designer
Focus
Production UI · Dashboards · Mechanic assignment · Data visualization
Collaboration
Lead designer (research, synthesis, direction) and engineering
Platforms
iPad first, then web and laptop
Aircraft
In progress
Completed
Arrival time
Deferrals
Defects
Airline
On hold
Clear
Arriving soon
6
In maintenance
4
Ready
9
On hold
2
PS-101
Type A
In maintenance
ETA
14:20
Gate
B-04
Deferrals
2
Defects
1
PS-102
Type B
Arriving
ETA
15:05
Gate
C-11
Deferrals
0
Defects
0
Unassigned
PS-103
Type A
Ready
ETA
13:40
Gate
B-07
Deferrals
1
Defects
0
PS-104
Type C
On hold
ETA
16:30
Gate
D-02
Deferrals
3
Defects
2
PS-105
Type B
At gate
ETA
13:55
Gate
A-09
Deferrals
0
Defects
1
PS-106
Type A
Arriving
ETA
17:10
Gate
C-03
Deferrals
1
Defects
0
Unassigned
PS-107
Type C
In maintenance
ETA
14:45
Gate
D-05
Deferrals
2
Defects
3
PS-108
Type B
Ready
ETA
13:15
Gate
A-02
Deferrals
0
Defects
0
Production interfaces are confidential. Every screen in this case study is a reconstructed example using fictional aircraft, people and data, and a deliberately different UI.
Management view
One place to see every aircraft.
Aircraft cards, status, maintenance information and an operational overview, together in one management view.
All aircraft
Cards
List
Arrival time
Deferrals
Defects
Airline
On hold
Clear
Aircraft
9
Arriving soon
6
In maintenance
4
Open deferrals
7
Open defects
6
PS-101
Type A
In maintenance
ETA
14:20
Gate
B-04
Deferrals
2
Defects
1
PS-102
Type B
Arriving
ETA
15:05
Gate
C-11
Deferrals
0
Defects
0
Unassigned
PS-103
Type A
Ready
ETA
13:40
Gate
B-07
Deferrals
1
Defects
0
PS-104
Type C
On hold
ETA
16:30
Gate
D-02
Deferrals
3
Defects
2
PS-105
Type B
At gate
ETA
13:55
Gate
A-09
Deferrals
0
Defects
1
PS-106
Type A
Arriving
ETA
17:10
Gate
C-03
Deferrals
1
Defects
0
Unassigned
Arriving within 6 hours
PS-102
15:05
Arriving
PS-106
17:10
Arriving
PS-101
14:20
In maintenance
PS-105
13:55
At gate
Needs attention
PS-104
Type C · Gate D-02
2 defects
PS-107
Type C · Gate D-05
3 defects
PS-101
Type A · Gate B-04
1 defects
PS-105
Type B · Gate A-09
1 defects
How the work moves
Same maintenance event. Different responsibilities.
Management
Understand aircraft status and coordinate work.
Assignment
Connect the work to the right mechanic.
Mechanic
Understand assigned work and what needs attention.
Status + history
Keep progress and previous activity visible.
Aircraft needs attention
PS-104
On hold
Defects 2
Deferrals 3
1
Review the aircraft and work
Deferrals
3 open
Defects
2 open
Gate
D-02
2
Assign a mechanic
M. Alvarez
J. Okafor
Assign
3
Mechanic receives the work
M. Alvarez
PS-104
5 tasks
Gate D-02
4
Work and status are updated
In maintenance
Progress
5
Status and history stay visible
M. Alvarez
14:05
K. Patel
13:40
J. Okafor
12:35
6
Reconstructed with fictional aircraft, people and data.
Mechanic assignment
Finding the work, then putting the right people on it.
This screen connects four things: the aircraft, the work it needs, who is available and who is assigned.
Assign mechanics
Assignments
Flights
Select an aircraft to assign mechanics.
Aircraft
Type
Gate
Arrival
Work
Mechanics
PS-101
Type A
B-04
14:20
PS-102
Type B
C-11
15:05
Unassigned
PS-103
Type A
B-07
13:40
PS-104
Type C
D-02
16:30
Unassigned
PS-105
Type B
A-09
13:55
PS-106
Type A
C-03
17:10
Unassigned
PS-107
Type C
D-05
14:45
PS-108
Type B
A-02
13:15
PS-109
Type A
B-01
18:00
Unassigned
PS-110
Type C
D-08
18:25
Unassigned
Available mechanics
M. Alvarez
Available
J. Okafor
Available
S. Lindqvist
Available
T. Nakamura
On another task
R. Haddad
Available
P. Moreau
On another task
L. Ferreira
Available
Cancel
Assign
2 deferrals · 1 defect
No open items
1 deferral
3 deferrals · 2 defects
1 defect
1 deferral
2 deferrals · 3 defects
No open items
1 deferral
2 defects
Mechanic and flight view
A focused view for the work in front of you.
The work assigned to a mechanic, and the aircraft and flight information around it. Designed for iPad first, then extended to web.
M. Alvarez
On shift
Assigned aircraft
PS-101
Type A · Gate B-04
5 tasks
PS-105
Type B · Gate A-09
13:55
3 tasks
PS-107
Type C · Gate D-05
14:45
6 tasks
PS-101
In maintenance
Tasks
Defect
Deferral
Flight PS 214
Arriving
Tail
PS-102
Type
Type B
Gate
C-11
ETA
15:05
Maintenance items
Defect
Open
Deferral
In progress
Defect
Done
Deferral
Open
Defect
In progress
Deferral
Done
Reconstructed iPad and web views. Fictional aircraft, people and data.
iPad, designed first
Then web + laptop
Status and history
Status, charts and history, working together.
For each aircraft: where it is in the maintenance process, how work is trending, and what has happened so far.
PS-101
In maintenance
Type A · Gate B-04 · ETA 14:20
1
Arrived
2
Inspection
3
Repairs
4
Checks
5
Ready
Open items by day
M
T
W
T
F
S
S
Fictional data, illustrative chart.
Work by type
Inspection
Repairs
Checks
History
14:05
13:40
13:10
12:35
11:50
11:05
Building what the product needed
Components, created as the product grew.
The existing design system covered typography and color. Many of the components the product needed didn’t exist yet, so I built reusable ones while designing the screens: aircraft cards, status treatments, rows, assignment controls and data displays.
Existing foundations
Typography and color
Created for the product
Components and patterns
Status chips
In maintenance
Ready
On hold
Filter chips
Arrival time
Defects
On hold
View toggle
Cards
List
In progress
Completed
Mechanic list item
Counter
Deferrals
2
Defects
3
Bar chart
Shown in context on the product screens above.
Where the work landed
Well into development, then on hold.
PlaneSight advanced into development and multiple rounds of testing before organizational changes placed the project on hold. Developers implemented substantial portions of the product.
1
Designed iPad first
Web and laptop experiences followed.
2
Web and laptop
Extended the product beyond the iPad.
3
Development and testing
The product advanced substantially into development and went through multiple testing cycles.
4
On hold
Later placed on hold following organizational changes.
What came out of it
Substantial product UI
Reusable product patterns
Advanced into development
Multiple testing cycles
Multiple roles and workflows
Reflection
Designing PlaneSight reinforced how much consistency matters when the same maintenance information has to work across different users, screens and stages of the workflow.
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