DeGroff Aviation’s Pitot Cover Innovation Targets Costly Maintenance Errors | Aviation International News

NBAA-BACE 2025

Fail-safe Pitot Cover Aims To Save Lives, Money

Simple chemistry drives major aviation safety advance

Steven DeGroff with his pitot cover technology at NBAA-BACE 2025 — © Amy Wilder

By Amy Wilder • Writer

October 16, 2025

For more than a century, pitot tube covers have remained largely unchanged—simple covers, some with red “remove before flight” streamers that rely on human attention. Steven DeGroff, president of DeGroff Aviation Technologies, set out to eliminate the risk that comes when one is accidentally left on during a flight.

“Human error will never come to an end,” DeGroff said. “So we have to design systems with technology in place to prevent hazards within the system itself.” His company’s new heat-activated pitot cover does exactly that.

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