Originally Posted by
Ngineer
Unfortunately we are living in a COVID world where there are a lot of rusty people in the aviation industry. I have seen many maintenance errors as a result, and have been expecting to see many more. It would not surprise me if this was somehow related to an error. There are a lot of mechanisms in place to get Flt crew back up to standard after considerable time not flying, but in the maintenance field it is very different. And when workplaces are restructured to save costs during this mess, things are more likely to go wrong.
One example of how things can go wrong from a simple error. An aircraft is on the ground for an extended layover and all drains, static ports & pitot probes are covered up (etc, etc). All covers are removed at the return to service, however the pitot covers on the vertical stab are missed. It does not get picked up on the walk around. Aircraft goes flying and everything seems fine until the pilot disconnects the autopilot and tries to fly it manually with high airspeed. The elevator feel is subsequently compromised and the elevator controls are over sensitive.
In no way am I suggesting this as a cause, just an example of the unexpected. I have personally seen aircraft go flying with gear pins left in, drain covers still fitted, and maintenance paperwork not completed. The Aviation industry is different to what it was 2 years ago. Everyone needs to take an extra minute to double check what they, and others, have or have not done.
Thank you for bringing this up.
Yes, investigation should include records of maintenance performed in this CoViD era.
And check all possible tasks that may have been missed (or exceeded if time-controlled).