Issues Three Recommendations, Primarily For Older Planes
Some very important notices for
pilots of Cessna single-engine aircraft... as on Wednesday the NTSB
issued three safety-related recommendations for owners of 1960-1985
Cessna aircraft.
The first recommendation affects owners of pre-1966 vintage
Cessna planes, and calls for an immediate inspection of the control
yokes used in those aircraft. The NTSB says approximately 12,500
Cessnas were manufactured with the acrylic plastic "hoop"-type
control wheels, which could develop cracks and snap at just the
wrong time -- as one did back in 2004, right as the pilot of a 1965
Cessna 205 flared for landing in Page, AZ. The incident led to a
hard landing... and a prop strike.
The NTSB says Cessna was aware of the problem as early as 1964
-- and that the company called for a one-time check then. The FAA
also issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in 2000, seeking
comments on a proposed airworthiness directive to deal with the
problem. After only four complaints were received by the agency,
however, the issue was dropped.
Shortly after issuing the 1964 service letter, Cessna switched
to magnesium-braced control yokes... but there are a lot of vintage
Cessnas still flying out there with the all-plastic yokes, and the
NTSB says it may just be time to reconsider that AD.
More Inspections For Foam-Filled Elevators
The second and third safety
recommendations address issues with foam-filled elevator and trim
tabs in more than 16,000 Cessna 206-, 207-, and 210-model airplanes
manufactured between 1960 and 1986.
When building those planes, Cessna filled the control surfaces
with foam to help the aluminum-skinned components retain their
shape... and it worked, but the NTSB says the design allows
moisture to become trapped between the aluminum and the foam,
leading to corrosion and severe flutter of the controls.
The NTSB says that very problem contributed to the 2004 loss of
a Cessna 210... and may have contributed to an earlier accident in
1997, as well.
Again, Cessna knew of the problem -- and in 1985 issued a
service recommendation calling for regular inspections of those
control surfaces. Cessna also made available retrofit kits for most
of the affected planes, that used plastic spacers... instead of
foam... in the control surfaces.
However, only a handful of those kits have been distributed, the
NTSB says... as owners are leery of the high replacement cost. The
agency is calling for additional inspections of planes with the
foam-filled elevators... as well as replacement of those parts when
necessary.
Now comes the question... who's going to pay for that?
FMI: Read The NTSB's Safety Recommendations Here And Here