Speaking as a 30 yrs experience engineer, my 1st tyoe rating was on the engine and airframe of the 421.
I spent 10 years working on these, most of the above comments are true to a point, but i need to address a few,
Heaters, if you knew what you were doing, there was no problem, easy access for a piston aircraft [try an aztec].
The u/c was pretty bomb proof apart from the torque link cracking and the odd vescalized strut internals galling up.
The poor old engine, the best sounding piston of modern times, 375 hp on full song static ground run, brill, but as has been said, if the jocks were over zealous with the load lever too quickly especially in descent, well we got paid more to fix it.
We did have a few engine changes [unscheduled] bilboa, oporto and at base, don't mention oporto to Roy Man, we nearly didn't make it out alive.
All in all I still love those babies, but just don't volunteer to change the flap cables and rig them, man that was a lovely job.
Have flown in several variants 421B, 421C and a stol 421C's.
jetset41
