British Gliding Association - Technical News Sheet TNS 2-2010 Issue 2-2010 Date: 10/05/2010 Airworthiness Information Aircraft Industries L23 Super Blanik AD 2010-0037-E, MB L23/052a (Mandatory) Elevator inner hinges inspection. http://ad.easa.europa.eu/blob/easa_ad_2010_0037_E.pdf/EAD_2010-0037-E_1 DG 400 (applicable to other types) Reported by Tony Hoskins, South East Aircraft Services. Difficult to see fuel line between tank and fuel main tap found leaking. (Advisory) Owners reported oil in bottom of fuselage. A small fuel line at base of 2 stroke fuel tank could not easily be seen and may have been missed at last fuel hose change. The line was leaking fuel but due to evaporation only the oil was left in the fuselage belly. Glasflugal Standard Libelle, 201B & 203 (Mandatory) BGA inspection 049/05/2010 issue 1 AD 1996-116, TN 201-33 Inspection of aileron actuating shaft after excessive loads. Modification or replacement of non modified shafts before/at next annual inspection. On-condition annual inspection of non modified shafts withdrawn. http://www.gliding.co.uk/bgainfo/technical/inspections.htm Grob Astir with water ballast AD 2010-0053R1, MSB-GROB-003(Mandatory) Inspection of water ballast hose connectors in fuselage for security. Inspection before 30 May 2010 and each annual inspection. http://ad.easa.europa.eu/blob/easa_ad_2010_0053R1.pdf/AD_2010-0053R1_1 Grob Astir TOP with water ballast AD 2010-0084, MSB-GROB-003 (Mandatory) Inspection of water ballast hose connectors in fuselage for security. Inspection before 30 May 2010 and each annual inspection. http://ad.easa.europa.eu/blob/easa_ad_2010_0084.pdf/AD_2010-0084_1 Schempp-Hirth Ventus 2cM AD 2010-0039-E, TN 825-49 (Mandatory) Starter ring gear inspections. Daily inspection until ring gear replaced. http://ad.easa.europa.eu/blob/easa_ad_2010_0039_E.pdf/EAD_2010-0039-E_1 Schempp-Hirth Nimbus 4DM and 4M AD 2010-0039-E, TN 868-20 (Mandatory) Starter ring gear inspections. Daily inspection until ring gear replaced. http://ad.easa.europa.eu/blob/easa_ad_2010_0039_E.pdf/EAD_2010-0039-E_1 1 TNS 2-2010 Slingsby T49 Capstan BGA 050/05/2010 issue 1 (Recommended) Reported by Dave Bullock at Windrushers gliding club. Slingsby T49 Capstan found with lower centre lamination of main wing fitting cracked Wing attachment fittings inspection guidelines in BGA Inspection 050/05/2010. http://www.gliding.co.uk/bgainfo/technical/inspections.htm Slingsby T51 Dart Reported by Ian Bannister, BGA Inspector Spar corrosion found on wing spar during routine inspection. (Advisory) Note; AD 005-09-97 and TI 109/51 issue 3 applies for 5 year repeat inspection. Sportine Aviacija LAK 12 SB 012.9 rev 003A (Mandatory) Continuation of service life inspections at 5 years/500 hrs and 15 years/1500 hrs. Ultimate service life currently 3000 hrs. http://www.lak.lt/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=12&Itemid=22&lang=lt Control Cables Reported by Stu Hoy of Anglia Sailplanes Further cases of severely corroded control cables continue to be found. Remember that cables must be inspected thoroughly, paying particular attention where the cables are in areas liable to contain water (guide tubes, conduits etc.) It may be necessary to "slip" cables for inspection. Cables that are rusty will have lost a significant amount of strength and are not airworthy. ENGINES Rotax 912 and 914 Engines SB 912-057 (Advisory) SB 914-039 TBO increased to 2000 hours or 15 years on new and some in service engines. See SB for details http://www.rotax-aircraft-engines.com/pdf/dokus/d04685.pdf http://www.rotax-aircraft-engines.com/pdf/dokus/d04042.pdf 2 TNS 2-2010 Engine Controls (Advisory) Reported by John McWilliam, BGA inspector In cases where the airframe or engine TC holder does not supply engine control cables and the only option is to use standard parts be careful to select a suitable cable that will withstand heat. A recent case highlighted this were on a newly installed cable, the plastic liner partially melted due to exhaust heat and partially restricted the control. EQUIPMENT Ottfur Release Product Support (Advisory) If you require spares or product support on the Ottfur range of releases please contact Roger Andrews at Midland Gliding Club 01588 650344 rogerandrews@tiscali.co.uk Roger is providing limited product support whilst the business is transferred from Cair Aviation. Williams Seat Harness Compendium entry 06/97 amended to Advisory. (Advisory) General Information 1 Maintenance Tasks and Inspections Inspectors and owners completing scheduled maintenance tasks are reminded that they are responsible for ensuring that the task is accurately completed. For example BGA GMS Task 57 - Speed/weight/manoeuvre placard. The task involves checking the placard is legible and accurately reflects the status of the aircraft. This means checking that the information contained on the placard is correct and that no mistakes have been made. Recently a placard was found that had been inspected for several years where the minimum seat load was incorrect. This could have resulted in a dangerously loaded glider. The weighing report was accurate but the transcription was not. Please remember to check the information. Another instance where an AD called up a special inspection of a wing internal structure, for some reason the defect was not seen. We fully accept there may have been a human factors element in this as the person carrying out the inspection had the correct equipment and recorded the work properly and was convinced the task was carried out properly, the fact remains the defects were there. Sometimes it is best to have a second person take a look and don’t be pressured into finishing the inspection before you are completely satisfied in your own time. Human factors is something we need to be aware of and will feature prominently in future BGA training. 2 Validity of Inspector Authorisations Inspectors are reminded to make sure that before signing for maintenance or ARC's your BGA Inspector Authorisation (and Licence if appropriate) is valid and covers the task you are certifying. Inspectors who certify maintenance or ARC's with a lapsed rating will be suspended pending a review by the Technical Committee even if they have subsequently renewed. Certifications made whilst lapsed are invalid and will need to be repeated. You cannot back date the certification. 3 TNS 2-2010 3 ARC Signatory Responsibilities ARC signatories are responsible for the ensuring that the copy of any ARC they issue issue is forwarded to the BGA with the 276 and fee within the 5 day period. Some ARC signatories are leaving the owner to do this and sometimes the owner does not appreciate the significance of delaying this process. Please remember you cannot delegate this responsibility to the aircraft owner. The quality of ARC's submitted to the BGA improved following the general letter to ARC signatories, however the number of errors is starting to increase again. We are now contacting individual ARC signatories advising them by issuing a formal notification. ARC signatories who consistently make mistakes will have their ARC authorisation suspended. Compliance Statement: All mandatory inspections and modifications have been included up to the following: CAA CAP 747 Mandatory Requirements for Aircraft, issue: 3 amendment: 2010/03 State of Design Airworthiness Directives review date: 10 May 2010 For reference: FAA Summary of Airworthiness Directives. Bi-weekly listing 2010-09 EASA Airworthiness Directives review date: 10 May 2010 CAA CAP 476 Mandatory Aircraft Modifications and Inspections Summary issue: 287 Maintenance Programme: CAA/LAMS/A/1999. Issue 2, amendment 0 CAA/LAMP/A/2007, Issue 1, amendment 2/2008 BGA GMS 2005, Issue 1, amendment 1 Jim Hammerton Chief Technical Officer 4