CPA E-ATIS
Volume 15 Issue 06
May 2, 2012
Well, when you stir the pot things happen. An update on the 210 wing spar cap service bulletin.
-Turns out Cessna has not asked for an airworthiness directive. I was told that by someone at the factory that was not in the meeting. Cessna left the action decision solely to the FAA.
-Some felt that when I said people with high time aircraft should hold off getting an inspection until this gets sorted out, that I meant it ain’t that big a deal wait awhile. What I meant was hold off until Cessna gets their service bulletin cleaned up and with the right information in it. I expect that will take less than a week.
-The hours on the low time airplane in Australia have been confirmed at 5750 hrs not 5600.
-Two more aircraft in Australia have been verified to have had cracked spar caps. One is a 12,000 hour 210L and the other is 9,000 hour 210M owned by a CPA member.
-The FAA has told us that they are requesting further information from CASA on the 5750 hour aircraft. As they say in Australia – Good on ya, mate.
-CPA has provided Cessna and the FAA a list of areas we think the service bulletin needs to be corrected, clarified and improved.
-Paul New at Tennessee Aircraft has now done 5 inspections, Phil Kirkham at Coastal Valley had done one (actually kind of more than that as he was looking at spar caps with us all weekend). No cracks found so far. If someone feels they want the inspection right now, either one of those shops would be good places to have it done. And Yingling in Wichita can certainly go on the list.
-It's becoming clear that if the aircraft does not have boots or wing avionics bays the inspection can be done with a light and a mirror. If it has either of those a thin flexible borescope will be needed.
That’s the update as of Wednesday May 2
nd.