30 SECOND RULE

• Clear your mind of all distractions.• Focus on your flight.• Remember at least one thing you learned at

the safety seminar.

Maintaining Aging General Aviation Airplanes

Presented by:

Alabama Northwest Florida Flight Standards District Office

Introduction

• General Aviation (GA) Fleet of 150,000 averaged more than 30 years old in 2000.

• By 2020, the average age could approach 50 years.

• Information is targeted for small single-engine airplanes however, this information applies to the entire GA fleet.

• Information endorsed by the FAA and Industry.

Background

• GA fleet is being used well beyond the flight hours and years envisioned when the aircraft was designed.

• The bulk of the fleet is designed to Civil Aviation Regulations (CAR) 3 standards developed in the 1950s or earlier.

• Most airplanes are rarely inspected beyond a non-intrusive annual or 100 hr inspection required by 14 CFR 43.15, Appendix D.

Purpose

• These recommended practices are similar to suggested physical exams that doctors recommend.

• These recommendations provide a baseline airplane-wide checklist of potential aging concerns for critical areas of an airplane.

• Promotes the sharing of information among the GA community.

Best Practices

Two specific best practices can have a fundamental impact on the way maintenance and inspection is approached for aging airplanes.

Airplane records researchSpecial attention inspections

Best Practices: Airplane Records Research

• Logbook Entries. (14 CFR 43.9 and 43.11)

• Aircraft Records. (14 CFR 91.417)

Best Practices: Airplane Records Research

• Logbook Entries. (14 CFR 43.9 and 43.11)• Aircraft Records.• Type Certificate Data Sheets. (TCDS)

Best Practices: Airplane Records Research

• Logbook Entries. (14 CFR 43.9 and 43.11)• Aircraft Records.• Type Certificate Data Sheets. (TCDS)• Airworthiness Directives. (AD)

Best Practices: Airplane Records Research

• Logbook Entries. (14 CFR 43.9 and 43.11)• Aircraft Records.• Type Certificate Data Sheets. (TCDS)• Airworthiness Directives. (AD)• Special Airworthiness Information

Bulletins. (SAIB)

Best Practices: Airplane Records Research

• Logbook Entries. (14 CFR 43.9 and 43.11)• Aircraft Records.• Type Certificate Data Sheets. (TCDS)• Airworthiness Directives. (AD)• Special Airworthiness Information

Bulletins. (SAIB)• Service Bulletins

Best Practices: Airplane Records Research

• Service Difficulty Reports. (SDR)

Best Practices: Airplane Records Research

• Service Difficulty Reports. (SDR)• National Transportation Safety Board

(NTSB) Records.

Best Practices: Airplane Records Research

• Service Difficulty Reports. (SDR)• National Transportation Safety Board

(NTSB) Records.• General Aviation Airworthiness Alerts

Best Practices: Airplane Records Research

• Service Difficulty Reports. (SDR)• National Transportation Safety Board

(NTSB) Records.• General Aviation Airworthiness Alerts• Supplemental Type Certificate (STC)

Best Practices: Special Attention Inspections

• 14 CFR 43.15, Appendix D and manufacturers’ inspections (CH-5) are probably not enough.

• A detailed inspection or series of inspections, modifications, parts replacements, or a combination of these may be necessary to keep an aging airplane operating properly.

Critical Areas

General Engine Modifications

Avionics Fuel System Propeller

Controls Fuselage Repairs

Electrical Instruments Systems

Empennage Landing Gear Wing

Role of Type Clubs

• Type Clubs may already have special inspection checklists for your aircraft.

• May determine trends specific to demographics such as airplane location, flight hours, etc.

• May provide data regarding field approvals for modification and alterations.

Special Attention

Inspection Example

Summary

• Records research, development of a special inspection checklist, and inspecting airplanes per the checklist provides the safety benefit.

• These benefits can be enhanced when information is shared.

• The checklist will be a “living document”.