Originally Posted by
falconer1
first, for better or for worse, EASA did not exist two decades ago..it is a fairly recent "invention"..but that's besides the point....
True, but the BEA and other regulatory bodies did exist:
_______________________
AIRWORTHINESS DIRECTIVE
released by DIRECTION GENERALE DE L’AVIATION CIVILE
Translation of ‘Consigne de Navigabilité’ ref. : 91-227-021(B) R1
In case of any difficulty, reference should be made to the French original issue.
AIRBUS INDUSTRIE
A320 aircraft
Pitot tubes
The present Airworthiness Directive applies to AIRBUS INDUSTRIE A320 aircraft, MSN 002 to 122, 124 to 179, 183 to 194, 196 to 228, 230 to 245 and 247 to 255 included without AIRBUS INDUSTRIE Service Bulletin A320-34-1024 R3.
In order to prevent wrong speed indication - one or several speed indications lower than the real aircraft speed - due to water accumulation in flexible hoses betweeen pitot tubes and air data modules (ADM), the following measure is rendered mandatory on the effective date of this Airworthiness Directive :
accomplish AIRBUS INDUSTRIE Service Bulletin A320-34-1024 R3 at first opportunity or before
January 31, 1992 at the latest.
Ref. : AIRBUS INDUSTRIE Service Bulletin A320-34-1024 R3
EFFECTIVE DATE : JANUARY, 03 1992
_________________
And I don't have the means to make a more comprehensive search in the BEA archives.
the only thing that still is fairly predictable and has not changed for a long while, guess a couple of million years by now, ( contrary to what all the climate change folks want you to believe ) IS the weather..
so maybe we should revert back to old "cheap" probes for the same old "expensive" weather..
Well, I don't want to debate about the climate change and about the GIEC, but a pilot (now being a specialist of aeronautics consulted by most of the French TV) mentionned the effect of climate change at high altitudes to try to explain why the frequency of Pitot problems seem to increase. I am not a met specialist, but Pitot problems have been here for long and it is not only about Airbus.
But maybe prevention/maintenance can also help: between two flights in the airports, are there systematic inspections of the pitot drain hole and of the static pressure lines ? (drainage of water/humidity/moisture in the pressure lines)
Jeff