Catastrophic structural failure
I was just reading the very sad thread about the accident at Coventry and it got me thinking that that isn't the first time I've read about serious accidents either happening or being narrowly averted due to some sort of failure of this type.
This concerns me...
The pilot is expected to check their a/c over before flying and that should make the spotting of a jammed control, for example, likely (along with full & free checks pre-t/o, of course), but spotting a likely folding wing is going to be more difficult (assuming there aren't visible gaps in airframe etc.).
Surely there's a reason why a/c need to be checked, serviced and overhauled as often as they do?! I think there are enough things to think about in flying - worrying over a wing dropping off all the time could just be enough to take the fun out of this!
Who is responsible for the structural safety of an a/c at the end of the day - an engineer or the pilot in command? And if the latter (pilot is ALWAYS responsible for safety of any passengers, right?), then how can we be certain of structural integrity if the a/c is not owned by us but by a club or group, for example?
And am I being over-reactive about this or is it a more widespread concern?
I hasten to add this is not intended to be or to provoke an 'engineer-bashing' thread
Hersh