Vienna, Austria — April 2026
DASH Aero, in collaboration with RH Aero and Austrian Airlines, has completed the first on-wing test of its newly developed APU steam cleaning tooling on an Austrian Airlines Airbus A320. The trial, conducted in mid-April 2026, evaluated DASH Aero’s proprietary steam-cleaning procedure alongside tooling that has since received conditional validation in the Airbus maintenance manual and an official part number.
Austrian Airlines Airbus Fleet Manager Bernhard Schreckensperger, MSc. was unambiguous in his assessment: “The results were highly convincing: The system demonstrated superior effectiveness in removing contamination, while also offering notable advantages in handling and processing time compared to current cleaning methods. Integrating the new procedure / tooling would complement existing measures aimed at improving cabin air quality and contribute to enhancing the overall technical performance and reliability of our Airbus fleet.” Austrian Airlines is now assessing next steps for potential implementation.
“This trial with Austrian Airlines and RH Aero validates everything we have been working toward with this tooling,” said David Allen, CEO, DASH Aero. “Having a major European carrier confirm the effectiveness of our procedure — and begin evaluating implementation — is a tremendous result.”