Sectors

Aviation

Cabin modifications, certified and installed through one accountable team.

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Certification thoroughness and speed

Aircraft modification work rewards two things: certification rigour and speed. They rarely coexist in the same organisation – but they do at Stirling Dynamics.

As an independent EASA 21J Design Organisation holding a broad scope of approval for changes and repairs to CS Part 23, 25 and 27 aircraft, we take a cabin modification from concept through to certified, installed reality – without routing it through a prime contractor or the original type certificate holder.

For operators, lessors and MROs that need a nimble, independent design approval holder rather than a large integrated house, that independence is the point.

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Independent EASA 21J Design Organisation

Giving OEMs, lessors, operators and MROs a direct route to certified modification and retrofit without routing through a prime contractor or the original TC holder.
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Cabin interior specialism

Covering everything from crew rest and premium economy conversions to obsolescence management and alternative-parts solutions for legacy platforms.
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Track record of turning regulatory and operational pressure into certified product

From crew rest units to seat blockers, evidencing the design-to-approval pathway in practice.

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Integrator across the full delivery chain

From certification through a network of 21G manufacturing partners to Part 145 installation partners. So the output is a fitted, airworthy solution – not just a stack of drawings.
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Speed and agility

That a small, senior team can offer against larger design organisations, particularly on the faster-turnaround minor modification work .
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CabinModHub as the emerging ecosystem

Bringing supplier innovation and products to market under Stirling’s certification umbrella.
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Delivery

An integrator, not just a design house

A 21J approval on its own gets you a certification package. It does not get you a fitted aircraft. Stirling operates as the connective layer across the whole delivery chain: our own certification capability, a network of 21G-approved manufacturing partners and Part 145 organisations that carry out the part manufacturing and physical installation. We also work closely with airline CAMO departments; they are often the first to identify a problem in service and the ones that ultimately have to live with the solution.
The delivery chain
21J
Our own certification capability
21G
Approved manufacturing partners
145
Physical installation
CAMO
Airline continuing airworthiness

One point of accountability

This matters because it means a customer gets one point of accountability for a complete outcome – approved design data, certified manufacturing and installation support – rather than having to stitch those pieces together themselves across three or four suppliers.

The right process for the job

It also means we are not tied to a single manufacturing process or facility. Working with multiple 21G partners keeps us close to the newest techniques, from additive manufacturing to lightweight and biodegradable composites, and it lets us specify the right process for the job – rather than the process we happen to own.

A different kind of advantage

A different kind of advantage Set against the large MROs who hold 21J, 21G, Part 145 and CAMO capability under one roof, we do not pretend to compete head-on. Ours is a different kind of advantage: a senior team small enough to shift priority quickly. We will build a genuinely personal working relationship with your engineers and programme leads, and turn minor modification work around at a pace that larger, more layered organisations often cannot match.
Cabin Interiors

Where the work sits: Cabin interiors

Our aviation work is concentrated inside the cabin: seats, overhead bins, galleys, lavatories and the systems around them, rather than external aerostructure. Much of it responds to a handful of recurring, practical problems: long OEM lead times, components that fail more often than they should, pricing that is difficult to justify, and parts that have simply gone obsolete on legacy platforms.

Our design team looks for the root cause behind a failure, rather than certifying a like-for-like replacement. This tends to produce a better part, not just a faster one – and increasingly a more sustainable one. Our life vest pouch, remanufactured from retired life vests at the end of their 10-year service life, is an example of that sustainable thinking in practice.
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Products

Some of our most requested products have grown directly out of regulatory pressure.

Each of these started as a specific operational or regulatory problem and became a certified, repeatable product, which is broadly how we approach the work: not troubleshooting in isolation but converting a recurring problem into an approved, supportable solution.
Crew Rest Unit for all Aircraft

Crew rest unit

Our crew rest unit converts standard economy seats into a compliant rest area for long-haul crew, then folds away into an overhead bin as loose equipment when it is not needed – so operators keep a full economy cabin rather than sacrificing seats to a dedicated rest area.
Crew Rest Couch for all Aircraft

Crew rest couch

The crew rest couch extends the same thinking to a flat sleeping surface across a triple or quadruple seat block. It has found uses well beyond crew rest, notably as a premium passenger experience on long-haul routes.
Stirling-Dyamics-Seat-Blocker

Seat blocker

The seat blocker is a design that reduces required cabin crew numbers by technically converting a seat into a storage area rather than a passenger seat. This is a piece of COVID-era thinking that has since found a permanent home as a premium economy feature.
Modifications

Two tiers of change, one clear process

Not every modification carries the same weight – and it helps customers to know the difference early. We can certify minor modifications independently and turn them around quickly. Major modifications require EASA consultation and a longer approval timeline. One of the more common causes of programme slippage we see is underestimation of that lead time at the outset. We would rather flag that distinction at the quote stage than let it surface later.

Any modification to an aircraft has to be certified by an approved design organisation, whether EASA, FAA equivalent or CAA for UK operations; there is no route around that requirement. So the practical question is always which design organisation gives you the best combination of approval, speed and support.
Tier 1 · Minor
Certified independently
Turned around quickly
Tier 2 · Major
EASA consultation
Longer approval timeline
EcoSystem

CabinModHub

A growing part of our work involves ideas that do not originate with us. Suppliers across the industry are developing genuinely useful cabin innovations but often lack the certification capability to bring them to market on their own.

CabinModHub is the ecosystem we have built to close that gap, connecting innovative suppliers, manufacturers and operators with our 21J certification and 21G and Part 145 network. So a good idea has a credible route to becoming an approved, installable solution rather than staying a concept. It sits alongside our own product development work and is worth a closer look in its own right.
01 · Ideas from

Suppliers, manufacturers and operators
02 · Through

CabinModHub
03 · Certified via

21J certification, 21G and Part 145 network

Latest Work

 

Aviation FAQs

Do you have any questions about our aviation
products or services? We have you covered.

 

Talk to us

Bring us your hardest cabin problem – we will help you turn it into an approved solution.

Cabin work is rarely simple but it should always be well understood before it starts. If you are weighing up a layout change, a persistent in-service failure, or an idea that needs a certification route, talk to us early.

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