G-JSAR
Page 99\100 of the full report, Para 7.2 is rather disturbing.
How had this been allowed to get into the presumably type approved helicopter? how many checks tests were done by manufacturer, service centrers, and line mechs, it appears the testing was either lax or non effective.
The impresion is it is a design fault, this surely brings regulators into the equasion ,
Another paragraph from report.
The left-hand G-JSAR sponson life raft was not ready to be used.
Supporting finding:
• The left-hand G-JSAR life raft could not be released using the exterior nor the interior
release handles. A detailed investigation of the cable grip and the release control cable
proved that it had not slipped, but that the control lever angle was too large in relation to
its horizontal axis and prevented the control lever from functioning in its normal operating
range.
How had this been allowed to get into the presumably type approved helicopter? how many checks tests were done by manufacturer, service centrers, and line mechs, it appears the testing was either lax or non effective.
The impresion is it is a design fault, this surely brings regulators into the equasion ,
Another paragraph from report.
The left-hand G-JSAR sponson life raft was not ready to be used.
Supporting finding:
• The left-hand G-JSAR life raft could not be released using the exterior nor the interior
release handles. A detailed investigation of the cable grip and the release control cable
proved that it had not slipped, but that the control lever angle was too large in relation to
its horizontal axis and prevented the control lever from functioning in its normal operating
range.
Assuming it is the last highlighted bit of section 7.2 you refer to, I think you may be making a wrong interpretation of the English. It means that the mechanism showed serious deficiencies in this particular aircraft, not in all L2s.
If I recall correctly (and it was a long time ago now) the problem arose because the description in the maintenance manual and associated images, showed only the mechanism on one side. With the other side being effectively a mirror image, the images misled the engineer last rigging the cable, into setting the lever to the mirror image angle, which resulted in insufficient travel and mechanical advantage to operate the life raft. So a bit of a human factors issue resulting from MM descriptions open to error.
Fortunately for me, the EC225 mechanism, whilst looking identical externally, is completely different internally.
HC
If I recall correctly (and it was a long time ago now) the problem arose because the description in the maintenance manual and associated images, showed only the mechanism on one side. With the other side being effectively a mirror image, the images misled the engineer last rigging the cable, into setting the lever to the mirror image angle, which resulted in insufficient travel and mechanical advantage to operate the life raft. So a bit of a human factors issue resulting from MM descriptions open to error.
Fortunately for me, the EC225 mechanism, whilst looking identical externally, is completely different internally.
HC
