The FAA has issued an SAIB affecting the Diamond DA20 series of
fixed wing aircraft. The issue surrounds the Nose Gear,
specifically the DA20 Nose Landing Fork Assembly.
According to the FAA SAIB, "This Special Airworthiness
Information Bulletin is issued to inform owners and maintainers of
Diamond DA20 series aircraft of a potential unsafe condition
regarding the cracking of the nose landing gear (NLG) fork
assembly. At this time, this airworthiness concern has not been
determined to be an unsafe condition that would warrant
airworthiness directive (AD) action under Title 14 of the Code of
Federal Regulations (14 CFR) part 39."
Background
Cracks have been discovered on the NLG fork assembly, part
number (P/N) 20-3220-08-00, during routine NLG inspections. The
cracks appear just above the axle hole on the cut out flange.
Transport Canada conducted a review of the service difficulty
report database from 2005 to 2010 and found 10 reports concerning
this issue.
In order to better detect cracking of the NLG fork assembly,
Diamond Aircraft Industries has revised their DA20-A1 and DA20-C1
Aircraft Maintenance Manual Chapter 05-20-00, Scheduled Maintenance
Checks. These changes require more frequent and more detailed
inspections. Diamond offers a more robust fork assembly, P/N
20-3220-08-00_1, as a replacement for the original P/N
20-3220-08-00. The new part will be installed on new production
models and supplied for future procurement orders.
Further detail on this product improvement is available from
Diamond Service Information Letters SIL20A1-008 and SIL20C1-005 or
by contacting Diamond Aircraft Industries Inc. at www.diamondaircraft.com.
Recommendations
The FAA recommends all affected owners and maintainers acquaint
themselves with and adhere to the changes in Diamond’s
revised inspection schedule. The FAA also recommends airplane
owners replace their original NLG fork assembly with the improved
part.
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