Wonder what happens when a plane is sent off for an overhaul?

Well for those with an engineering interest, British Airways opened its doors to the BBC to film an episode of “Engineering Giants” where a BA 747-400 –  G-CIVX is sent for a full strip-down, test, repair and rebuild the plane.

The intro goes a bit like this:

Engineer turned comedian Tom Wrigglesworth and Rob Bell, rising star of mechanical engineering, climb on board Victor X-ray, a 200 ton, £200,000,000 Boeing 747.

This jumbo jet has flown over 36 million miles in its 14 year life with British Airways. Now it will be broken into tens of thousands of parts in the airline’s maintenance hangar in Cardiff, before being painstakingly reassembled and certified fit to fly again. This is the first time this complex process has ever been filmed and it provides fascinating insights into just how a 747 works.

Rob and Tom also visit the UK’s largest plane salvage centre in the Cotswolds to discover what happens to a 747 when it reaches the end of its working life, and discover how valuable parts are stripped for resale before the carcass is torn apart to be recycled

A five week job, it’s an amazing task, and one that keeps us safe in the air. And yes for all you BA First Class lovers, G-CIVX gets New First fitted to her.

For those who use their TV’s still: it’s listed as on at the following times:

• BBC HD  Monday 16 Jul 2012,  22:30
• BBC Two Thursday 19 Jul 2012  23:20 (BBC Two only on England, Northern Ireland, Scotland)
• BBC Two Thursday 19 Jul 2012  23:50 (BBC Two only on Wales)

UK viewers who missed this can access this via BBC iPlayer at http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01l1w71/Engineering_Giants_Jumbo_Jet_StripDown/ (of course, if you have a decent VPN Tunnel, you might be able to access it beyond the UK). It’s available until 20:59 Sunday, 5th August 2012.

For those who just want to see who want to what happens at the end of the life of a 747, head to http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-18833070

It is certainly worth a watch – and shows the dedication of British Airways Engineering.