Thai 744 skin corrosion
 

Any info on a Thai 744 grounded in sydney? On WAC cracks were found in the fuselage due to corrosion ????

One wonders if they are anything like the cracks QF discovered in one of the ex Malaysian 744's they bought a while back. Huge crack started from scribe marks from scraping paint or sealant with the wrong tools!

Of course QF don't have the spare capacity for cutomer repairs like they once had so it might be there a long time!

J

WAC? walk around check?

wow, that's a new one on me.

and "they don't make 'em like they used to"

Its Back in BKK

So will structural problems such as these show up as easily on the new plastic fantastic 787? After all most of the 747 fuselage is a long way above a pilot on walk round.

I realise that plastic doesn't corrode, but what warning signs does it give that a potential problem is building up? I presume the static test airframe will show this info given time.

The question I have is were any cracks actually found? I had heard a rumour that it was damaged by some ground equipment, and was therefore more of a gash than a crack. Be interested to know the truth.........

makes you wonder... I'm currently working on an ex 744 from Malaysia... quite a few mods which I have never seen in the SRM

maybe they are approved, but its rather wierd non the less

Direct experience of Thai Engineering over many years has indicated that they are professional, competent and thorough. I would be surprised (to say the list) if this was a result of undiscovered - or ignored - corrosion.

I think you will find that the dodgy paint stripping resulting in scoring at the lap joints and subsequent cracking was not done by MAS themselves. The same problem appeared in ex MAS B737's that went to Ryanair.
The painting contractor was using box cutters during the paint/sealant removal.

Naughty Naughty.

I flew back from Hong Kong on a Thai 747-400 last week and looking over the wings and engine housing, the paint-job was horribly bubbled.

Does this have much of an effect at speed? It certainly can't help the drag. That said, you'd have to applaud the cohesion (as opposed to the adhesion) as the bubbles had not been ripped off.

From memory the Ryan aircraft with the paint problems were ex Britannia and Transavia. I don't remember any connection with MAS.

So I guess that nobody knows/wants to say if infact it was a fatigue crack that was found...............:ugh:

Thai pom whats the story with the a/c