An environmental sampling system (60) includes a passage (62) in an aircraft component and a removable collector (64) disposed in the passage (62). The passage (62) has an inlet (62a) at a first region (R1) and an outlet (62b) at a second region (R2). When the aircraft (21) component is in operation the first region (R1) is at a greater pressure than the second region (R2) such that air flows through the passage (62) from the inlet (62a) to the outlet (62b). The removable collector (64) is configured to retain constituents from the air and to react with the media designed to mimic corrosion effects seen at higher temperatures on engine parts. The constituents can then be characterized and correlated to engine deterioration (94) to predict maintenance activity.