Least Favorite Maintenance Tasks
Mechanics/Technicians, thought about starting a thread on this topic this morning: what’s the least favorite maintenance task on the particular helicopter(s) you’ve worked on?
For me it’s as follows:
AH-64 Apache, 3 point safety wiring for canopy jettison initiators, have to lay upside down in cockpit floor and use a mirror. Then hear QC tell you “looks beautiful! Too bad you did it backwards” because, mirror!🤣
CH-47 Chinook:
Hydraulic System Purification post phase. Sit around waiting for 30 gallons of hydraulic fluid to filter(4+ hours) til the water content was down to below 10 parts per million. Really. Knowing that the first time you pop open a brand new can of 83282 and service the system it’s gonna have 30 plus parts per million in it.
UH-60 the “30/30”, 30 minute ground run/30 minute hover for transmission serviceability check after chip light. We call it doing a “penalty run”. 🤣 And blade de-ice systems checks. Adjusting/safety wiring the tail rotor control quadrant stops in the cabin ceiling. Adjusting collective balance springs(soon to be a thing of the past, last 10 60L’s leaving before the end of the year, YAY! Hooray for collective trim actuator on 60M)🤣
I’m sure I’ll think of more, I’ve probably blacked them from memory. Some that I thought were bad when I was an Apprentice Mechanic are no biggie now, funny how perspectives change with knowledge/experience.
Curious to see what others have to share!
FltMech