> It's not like the manufacturer can't schedule a full disassembly of a unit 10 years into its lifetime

Wait hang on, I was under the impression that a D check (?) did exactly this, every 6-7 years. This is second hand knowledge from a pilot buddy so maybe I'm forgetting something. Also it's on the civvy side of things, maybe the military does stuff differently?

If it's as simple as the military has shittier maintenance checks, then that's a solvable problem.

Edit: ok looked it up, it is a civilian vs military thing.