Hot section maintenance accounts for over 50% of the maintenance costs of typical aircraft engines. From this statistic, one can infer that (A) the serviceability rate of engines derives from the hot section more than from all other components combined, and (B) the need for improved diagnostics and prognostics is greatest in engine hot sections. Operational strategies for extending life of partly degraded engines can be developed by using prognostics as an element of the strategy. A robust useful life remaining (ULR) prognostic methodology is proposed, which takes into account the known failure mechanisms in hot sections, progression of faults, diagnostic inputs, and usage information to accurately and reliably predict the remaining useful life of individual engine components. The method will incorporate established relationships between operating conditions (power and EGT for example) and component service life and also include diagnostics and prognostics. The proposed ULR prognostic methodology has multiple applications across all gas turbines. The benefits of this technology include improved flight safety and mission readiness, as well as reduced maintenance costs
