Robinson blade AD
I have been reading through the blog and would like to add some comments.
Airwolf obtained and AMOC for the earlier AD and has applied for an AMOC for the new AD. Both the new AD and the previous AD require paint to be present on the bond line to prevent corrosion. The Airwolf Protective Blade Tape works by insuring that the paint remains on the bond line. The protective tape (which requires an STC) should last 500-700 hours depending on the environment. The tape is designed to be sacrificial. It is replaced when worn out so the blade is protected. The life of the tape far exceeds the life of paint. Even if the blade tape were to last only 400 hours it is still advantageous over doing a complete stripping and painting of the blades. Blade painting would have to be done repeatedly in a 400 hour period. Flying in one rain storm once could result in the need for new paint. Some operators are complying with the AD by hitting the bond line with a spray can when it is exposed. This shortcut is worthless and will not give the desired protection from corrosion.
One person wrote that they had problems with vibration during a trial run with blade tape. It is possible that the tape was not properly installed. The Airwolf tape kits come with very detailed instructions. If installed properly no vibration or peeling of the blade tape will occur.
As you can tell I am a big advocate of the Airwolf blade tape. I have documented at least 30 instances of delamination of Robinson blades. You can buy or install just one blade so per the AD if you find delamination it will cost just over $36k for set of new R22 blades and just under $50k for a set of R44 blades. The blade tape, of course, won’t fix delamination. Once it occurs the blades are scrap.