Digital maintenance logbook options

AlphaPilotFlyer

AlphaPilotFlyer

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AlphaPilotFlyer
Saw a new logbook app called goodplane that digitizes your logbooks and keeps track of most items. Wondering is anyone has any experience with it, or others. I’m currently using a spreadsheet for major entries and on board log book for flight info, but would like to go digital.
 
Hey, I actually developed a platform for aircraft maintenance tracking, PlaneDNA. We ingest scanned logbooks for airframe, engine, and prop, index all the data, and make it searchable in plain English. This originally started as a side project for me, and snowballed into the platform it is today. We can also find all ADs that apply be airframe, engine, and prop and find which ones were already complied, and are upcoming.

For those of you that find the FAA DRS system hard to navigate, we also have a free AD lookup tool that will return all ADs for an aircraft, and allow you to download a summary.

We offer 10 pages free to test out the platform, but please DM me if you'd like me to bump that up for testing. I'm a pilot myself and use it for my Bonanza, but if you have any questions or feature requests please let me know!
 
How would you handle a subpoena from law enforcement or the FAA? Send them an encrypted r unencrypted file?
 
Mikey52 said:
How would you handle a subpoena from law enforcement or the FAA? Send them an encrypted r unencrypted file?
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This isn't meant to be a 100% replacement for hard copy logbooks, but meant for organization and easy of getting a clear picture of aircraft history and other logbook data. All data is encrypted by default as part of the upload process. I imagine the FAA or law enforcement would subpoena the pilot or owner of the aircraft for logbooks, rather than our platform, but if we received a lawful order, we would comply with it.
 
One of our EAA members has just released MXLedger that uses AI to read scans of your logbooks. It can read old handwritten logbooks as well as typed ones. It keeps track of things like AD compliance, oil changes, altimeter and pitot static checks, and battery replacement times.
 
Josh Mac said:
This isn't meant to be a 100% replacement for hard copy logbooks,
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This is the important part. There are still pen and ink signature requirements for certain maintenance records per the existing FAA guidance. Plus 91.419 can come into play with certain types of digital records during the transfer of mx records when an aircraft is sold.
 
Bell206 said:
This is the important part. There are still pen and ink signature requirements for certain maintenance records per the existing FAA guidance. Plus 91.419 can come into play with certain types of digital records during the transfer of mx records when an aircraft is sold.
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110%, I would say our airplane owners using the platform today are using it to ask questions of their logbook. For example, an alternator went out on someone's aircraft, but wasn't at the airport and needed the exact P/N for the alternator. Given their logbooks had been uploaded and searchable, we were able to return the date the alternator was installed, along with P/N and S/N.

PlaneDNA is meant to work alongside your hardcopy logbooks, and save time from digging through entries for information.

According to 91.419, the records need to be transferred to the new owner, but can be coded/digital. Even though PlaneDNA provides a way to download all logbook data, I would still say the paper logbooks NEED to be given to the purchaser as part of the sale.
 
Josh Mac said:
According to 91.419, the records need to be transferred to the new owner, but can be coded/digital.
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The key part to 419, it's up to the buyer whether they will accept a coded/digital version of the records. So as you state, digitizing records is merely another tool in managing those records in the big picture. Just don't be the guy who, after scanning the records, throws the paper versions in the old file cabinet in the back of the hangar under the leaky roof.
 
So how do these work at maintenance events, oil changes, etc? Write a paper entry, then scan it into PlaneDNA or MXLedger?

I would love to digitize my 182 records. I downloaded the Coflyt app a couple years ago, but never really took the time to dive into it.
 
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AK737pilot said:
So how do these work at maintenance events, oil changes, etc? Write a paper entry, then scan it into PlaneDNA or MXLedger?

I would love to digitize my 182 records. I downloaded the Coflyt app a couple years ago, but never really took the time to dive into it.
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For PlaneDNA, you would upload all your logbook scans or photos from your phone/computer. We process and categorize all log entries based on airframe, engine, or prop logbooks. All the entry data is scanned, text extracted, and then made searchable through a chat interface.

For each entry, we show the raw text, and create a summary of work performed, part numbers, compressions, etc. Then all of your logbook data is searchable through a chat interface.

You can sign up for an account and upload 10 pages for free, but if you're interested in trying it out with more logbook data, just DM me and I can bump up the limit beyond 10 pages.

As an example I had my alternator go out back in Februray. I went online to PlanePower, but the part numbers I found were only for the kits, not the actual alternator. After going through Spruce, and a couple other sites, I couldn't find the P/N and I live 45 mins away from my hangar. I simply asked PlaneDNA that question and it provided me the data I needed referning my logbook data.
 

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I'm using BetterPlane right now. It replaced my Excel spreadsheet, and I like it a lot.
(Full disclosure, I am a beta tester and get access to the app through that rather than a subscription, but I am not paid or have any affiliation other than as a tester.)

BetterPlane is working out very well for me. The developer, Jason Gould, is very active and responsive to new feature requests and bug reports. He started the app as a logbook digitizer, and it grew from there, so one of the standout features is making your logbooks searchable. It only took about 15 minutes to scan all my logbooks from 1978 to date, and the system then OCR'ed them and made them searchable, even the handwritten early entries. Very accurate, and now I can search for a phrase like "ELT Battery" and it locates all of the entries and pulls up the actual logbook page. Importantly, however, this does NOT replace the written log entries like a Foreflight log does for flights.

The app also has an annunciator function where you can enter any item and due times or dates. You update your tach or Hobbs times, and the app then tracks and warns you as the items approach their times. I track my registration, annual, engine time, prop time, spar inspection, magnetos, ELT batteries, Aspen batteries, Oil change, altimeter, and transponder certs.

Take a look and see if it's what you were looking for.
 
Hey thanks for the mention @Chris Mixon! As Chris said, over the last few years I've built and run a mobile-app based platform called BetterPlane that both helps digitize maintenance logbooks and keep track of maintenance items. So far lots of very happy customers and still tons more in the pipeline for BetterPlane. I can't post links here (not active enough of PoA though I should be, mostly lurk), but the app is available on the App and Play stores under BetterPlane, or through the site at betterplane . com
Happy to answer any questions here as well!
 
Maybe it's because I'm cheap, maybe it's because I'm in SW - but I didn't really see a reason to pay for something that digitizes and allows me to index (hence search/act on) my logs. I probably spent less in creating a fully fledged solution for myself than what I would have paid in a month to a paid service. Made it available for free (and open-sourced it) - MyTailLog. Happy to get any feedback or answer questions on how I'm managing my own logs now.
 
Chris Mixon said:
It only took about 15 minutes to scan all my logbooks from 1978 to date, and the system then OCR'ed them and made them searchable, even the handwritten early entries.
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Can you provide more info? How does the scanning process work?
 
Feed pdf to Claude and presto done. Did it with many old logs, very few mistakes.
 
SoCal 182 Driver said:
Can you provide more info? How does the scanning process work?
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The developer started with a scanning tool to do OCR on logbooks and then realized a better application. I used my phone and the BetterPlane App. All I had to do was create folders for Airframe, Prop, and Engine and then scan the pages. After you scan the logbook pages, BetterPlane uploads, and then you get the OCR pages back in the app. It worked so well that the handwritten pages also got OCR without problems. There is also an attachment feature which I used to add parts tags, FAA 337 forms, and other info that used to live in a paper-clipped bundle in the back of the logs. The developer added a download pages function this week, and I am still playing with that.

I am an unpaid beta tester, but that's my only affiliation with the app.
 
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