louras

Hello everyone,
In my club's p2002jf weight report the measured empty weight is 396kg. That's a whooping 26kg above the manufacturer specs. To my knowledge there is no unusual equipment installed and I can't find a logical explanation..
Anyone with similar experience? Are the manufacturer specs so optimistic or is there something unusual in the weighing of this aircraft?
Looking forward to your feedback!

rans6andrew

ah yes, the old "standard weight in the manufacturers documentation wheeze". A mythical figure once seen but never again.

More seriously though, I would expect this to be the minimum equipment / lightest equipment fit required for safe flight. It may not include anything that is an option, think spats, spinner, radio, headsets, GPS, cockpit trim panels, heater, balistic chute, landing light(s) electric trimmer(s) , seat cushions, head rests, sun visors, glove box, registration decals, paint etc and then fit the narrow wheels and some thin tyres.

I bought a Rans microlight that was subsequently found to be a bit overweight because it was equally over equiped. To get it down to the legal weight I removed the following. Battery, battery box, some heavy wiring, an electric fuel pump, a brick of a GPS, about a metre of fuel pipe, fuel T pieces, sun visors, leg fairings, landing light, fire extinguisher, inner tubes from the tyres and finally, the doors as the aircraft was permitted to fly without them. I heard a rumour that the dealer kept a special light weight wooden propellor just for weighing duties but I didn't need to ask to borrow it! After the weighing I didn't bother refitting most of the stuff as the aircraft seemed to fly better without it.

How old is the aircraft? What did it weigh when originally weighed? I assume it isn't just microlights that are weighed before the issue of the first PTF/COA?

Maoraigh1

There's a lot of variation in Class A aircraft actual, new, AUW, with same equipment. Homebuilds more than factory, but factory new do vary. Usually heavier than sales department figure.
Weighing is done as part of required inspections, and latest weight and C of G is used in calculations. The older the aircraft, the greater the likely difference from the original factory-new figure for that aircraft.

tecman

Just to be clear, the JF model is the VLA-certified P2002 and is often registered in a GA "normal" category, within whatever national licensing scheme applies. In practice, as the previous posters note, it doesn't take too many avionics boxes and other common accessories/luxuries to come up with an extra 20 kg or so. My observation is that people tend to fit more "stuff" than really necessary, although in a club/training environment, I can see the temptation. The 5+ hour P2002 potential endurance is pretty good but, especially on longer flight legs with a passenger, I occasionally wish I had fewer black boxes and more fuel payload. Even so, with the sophistication balance set sensibly, it's a great little aircraft and a marked improvement over the old-style two-seaters.

One bit of good news is that the MTOW on the new JFs is 620 kg, compensating partly for the accessory bloat (and/or more portly pilots).

louras

Thanks all for your replies.. So its extra fuel or extra piece of cake..

I thought we have a pretty basic configuration as I dont see anything that is not explicitely mentioned in the POH..I'll take a careful look at the equipment list to find the biggest offenders.

@tecman: the 580 vs 600 vs 620 MTOW is another mystery for me... I have 600 on the weight report. Have all the JFs been authorized to 620 or does it depend on a specific certification/serial number? I see sometimes metion to a certain "A12 addition" but have no idea what it is..

tecman

Louras, I don't claim to be a licensing expert (just a JF owner/pilot) but my reading of the relevant Tecnam service bulletin (http://reservedarea.tecnam.com/Utili...e-952ceebccda1) is that all the changes for the MTOW increase are largely procedural and applicable to all serial numbers. You get the ASI rescaled (no doubt to reflect the whole knot or two change in critical speeds), install a new placard or two, and update the flight manual. If my memory is correct, there was an intermediate bulletin some years ago taking the MTOW from 580 to 600 kg but that's obviously been overtaken by the new bulletin.

I think the LSA versions of the P2002 were always 600 kg MTOW and they remain limited to that in jurisdictions where the LSA rules apply. Someone may correct me on the history of the LSA line if I'm in error.

I've not bothered with the MTOW increase for a variety of reasons, one of which is that the regulatory and licensing environment in Australia for private aviation is now so oppressive that I see myself eventually re-registering the aircraft in a recreational aviation category. That transfer will be easier if the log books etc show a weight at or below 600 kg.