Tue, Nov 03, 2009
PA-28, PA-32, PA-34 and PA-44 All Could Be Included
The FAA has proposed an AD that could affect an estimated
41,928 Piper Cherokee, Cherokee 6, Seneca, and Seminole airplanes
for inspection and possible repair of a control wheel shaft which
could be incorrectly assembled. The FAA says that the problem, if
left uncorrected, could lead to separation of the control wheel
shaft, resulting in loss of pitch and roll control.
The FAA has received two reports of control wheel shafts that
have been incorrectly assembled at Piper. The first incident
involved the loss of the control wheel on a Piper Model PA-34-220T
airplane, where the right-hand control wheel shaft and universal
joint separated due to a misdrilled hole for the threaded taper
pin. The second report was of a ground inspection on a Piper
PA-34-220T airplane that revealed a similar situation between the
control wheel shaft and the universal joint in the left-hand side.
Investigation following these reports revealed that the control
wheel shafts had been incorrectly assembled at Piper and holes were
misdrilled even though they may visually appear acceptable. The
hole in the shaft may be too close to the end of the shaft, causing
a significant reduction in joint strength. Since discovery of this
problem, Piper has added a step to the manufacturing process and
also introduced a fixture to ensure proper assembly of the control
wheel shaft/universal joint.
File Photo
The FAA estimates that the cost of the inspection should be
approximately $40 per airplane, and if a repair was needed, that
would run a little over $1,400.
The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking is currently on file with the
FAA, and comments are due by December 29th.
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