This paper presents a metod for reliability assessment of structural components on the basis of diagnostic parameters recorded during operation of aircraft and sea going ships. It was assumed that a potential failure may simultaneously concerns surface wear process and fracture of an arbitrary structural component. In order to develop a reliability assessment model some elements of random walk theory were applied. This work covers surface wear density functions of a component. In the case of surface wear the model is based on a difference equation from which, after transformation, a Fokker-Planck partial differential equation was obtained. By solving the equation component’s surface wear density function is achieved.