Mon, Apr 25, 2005
Good News For T-34 Owners
Most T-34 pilots can return to the air this summer as the FAA
has issued several alternate means of compliance (AMOC). The
Beechcraft T-34 Mentors were grounded last December after the wing
of a plane used in mock aerial combat separated in flight. This was
the third occurrence in the last few years, so the FAA issued an
emergency AD to ground the planes.
"The T-34 owners have been great to hang in there through this
process," said airshow performer Julie Clark in an exclusive
interview with ANN. "It's been a lot of work, but we've had
wonderful support from the engineering team of the T-34
Association."
Clark stressed that the GAMI folks, Jud Nogle of Nogle and Black
Aviation, and Dan Thomas, the VP of the T-34 Association really
pulled together to work the issue.
This AMOC is the first step in a process to return the aircraft
to flight permanently. As the aircraft build up flight time, data
will be collected. The goal is to extend the times between
inspections, and hopefully allow the fleet to motor on for years to
come.
The T-34 Association and the FAA worked together to obtain a
solution for the problem. The AMOCs will allow owners to fly their
T-34s with wing spar modifications by GAMI, Nogle & Black, or
Parks Industries for up to 60 hours, as long as they don't exceed
152 knots or -0/+2.5 Gs. They aren't allowed to fly aerobatics, or
fly into known moderate or severe turbulence. And, they must
complete a surface eddy current inspection. Owners will need to
contact the original AMOC holder to get the 60 hour flight
extension.
Aircraft modified by
the Saunders Strap AMOC will have to have the same surface eddy
current inspection, but then can return to its original flight
envelope. The center section will then need to be inspected every
300 hours.
A special AMOC incorporating frequent inspections of her plane
will allow Clark to fly her airshow performances this season.
"We'll make all of our scheduled appearances," said Clark. That's
good news for the crowds!
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