Squawk Box

The following information is derived from the FAAs Service Difficulty Reports and Aviation Maintenance Alerts. Click here to view “Airworthiness Directives.”

———-

Several years ago, Cessna designed, manufactured and approved an engine oil filter adapter for use on Continental engines installed on the companys aircraft. The oil filter adapter was made available through the Cessna parts distribution system and was installed on various other aircraft using TCM engines via FAA field approval.

In 1996, the FAA issued AD 96-12-22, which addressed the possibility of the adapter becoming loose and/or separating from the accessory case and…

The following information is derived from the FAAs Service Difficulty Reports and Aviation Maintenance Alerts. Click here to view “Airworthiness Directives.”

———-

The FAA reports it is still receiving accident and incident reports stemming from fuel exhaustion on Cessna 210s. The FAA blames most of the episodes on pilots neglecting to operate their aircraft in accordance with the flight manual revisions ordered in AD 94-12-08. Also, some pilots apparently are confused about the proper operation of the electric fuel boost pump. There are several different methods of operating both the normal (low boost) pump switch and the emergency (hig…

The following information is derived from the FAAs Service Difficulty Reports and Aviation Maintenance Alerts.

———-

Witnesses in the airport traffic pattern heard the pilot of a Cessna 172M announce on the radio that he had lost all aileron control.

The airplane crashed, and while investigating the accident, an NTSB investigator discovered that two flight control cables were broken. He found that the left aileron control cable separated in the area of the top pulley located at the right doorpost. The cable was severely frayed for several inches on each side of the failure point and there was evidence of heavy corrosion on the cable and inside the pulley track.

When the pu…

The following information is derived from the FAAs Service Difficulty Reports and Aviation Maintenance Alerts. Click here to view “Airworthiness Directives.”

———-

Every Champion CF0100 and CF0101 oil filter is packaged with a gasket kit that contains a copper gasket, a square rubber gasket and a flat rubber gasket – all of which are used to prevent the oil filter housing assembly from leaking. Some of the square gaskets may have been manufactured thicker than called for in the manufacturers specifications. The square gasket, supplied in the kit, should be 0.180 inch thick. Some gaskets were found with a thickness of 0.25-inch. The manuf…

The following information is derived from the FAAs Service Difficulty Reports and Aviation Maintenance Alerts. Click here to view “Airworthiness Directives.”

———-

Recently, a Cessna 172R made an off-airport landing after the pilot/CFI was unable to restart the engine following a power-off stall demonstration. The engine idle speed and fuel flow setting were found to be out of adjustment.

Other model 172R and 172S aircraft were examined and found to exhibit settings that were as much out of adjustment or worse than the one involved in the off-airport landing.

Reports concerning 182S and T206H models indicate this problem may involve…

The following information is derived from the FAAs Service Difficulty Reports and Aviation Maintenance Alerts. Click here to view “Airworthiness Directives.”

———-

A sudden and complete engine failure forced the pilot of an American Champion 7GCBC to make an off-airport landing.

Investigators determined the engine failure was caused by melted P-lead wires that were bundled with an overheated wire connecting the master switch and the overvoltage relay. The cause of the overheated wire could not be readily determined, but the affected wire was not protected by a fuse or circuit breaker.

The accident investigators and a team from Ame…

The following information is derived from the FAAs Service Difficulty Reports and Aviation Maintenance Alerts.

———-

The FAA has issued a safety recommendation regarding a batch of O rings manufactured by Parker and distributed by Valtec because the rings may swell excessively when coming into contact with avgas. The problem first came to light after the fuel selector valve on a Cessna 180 was rebuilt and the engine then suffered fuel starvation. The O ring had enlarged to twice its original size. The O rings in question bear a part number of MS29513-112, a package date of 06/01 and a lot number of 60002401. The manufacturer concluded that the lot was made from the wrong materi…

The following information is derived from the FAAs Service Difficulty Reports and Aviation Maintenance Alerts.

———-

The FAA has issued a Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin that warns of possible AD action requiring gyro backups for IFR flight.

The SAIB cautions pilots to conduct a condition check of the vacuum or pressure system prior to each IFR flight.

Last falls crash of a Cessna 335 carrying Missouri Gov. Mel Carnahan prompted a review of service difficulty reports of vacuum system components. In the past 27 years, mechanics have filed 2,003 reports – 18 in the 12 months prior to the bulletin.

Parker Hannifin (Airborne) has acknowledged a potential late…

The following information is derived from the FAAs Service Difficulty Reports and Aviation Maintenance Alerts.

———-

An FAA certified repair station received a Janitrol cabin heater combustion head in exchange for a new part purchased by a customer. The trade-in combustion head had a hole approximately 0.4375 inches in diameter burned through it and the entire part was severely corroded.

Clearly cabin heaters are operated with minimal maintenance until they fail. A pressure decay test of this unit would have made its deficiencies obvious.

Cabin heaters are neglected during the summer, then expected to perform perfectly during the first cold snap. However, cabin heaters tha…

The following information is derived from the FAAs Service Difficulty Reports and Aviation Maintenance Alerts.

The FAA Aircraft Certification Office has called again for inspecting the door handles of Beech Debonairs, Bonanzas, Barons and Travel Airs. The checks are required by AD 97-14-15, but pilots should also familiarize themselves with the POH section on actions required in the case of the door coming unlatched in flight.

Pilots should be aware that an open door creates a lot of noise and loose objects in the cabin can blow around vigorously.

When inspecting the door handles, ensure the door handles are installed correctly and that the door handle does not have a worn…