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I used to work as an apprentice for a GA mechanic (never pursued it, went to college instead). Disassembling something, inspecting it then performing reassembl

I used to work as an apprentice for a GA mechanic (never pursued it, went to college instead). Disassembling something, inspecting it then performing reassembly and properly torquing the screws with locktite per some published procedure is one of those things aircraft mechanics do all day. Unless the design of the sensor would make it inaccurate after being reassembled (I'm skeptical of this, it wouldn't make sense for a few reasons) this is kind of a dick move to the aircraft owners that they're probably doing in the name of "look how careful we're being" Any certified mechanic anywhere can do the former with no lead time and if it turns out the threads are close to stripped out from a loose sensor banging around on there then replace the sensor. It doesn't make sense to replace the sensor off the bat unless you just want to be seen "doing something".

toomuchtodo 8y ago
It’s probably the right call from an optics perspective so soon after the 737 MAX fiasco. It’s more expensive than a workbench fix, but cheaper than bad publicity and a loss of faith in FAA governance. It’s a shame the cost is being foisted on GA owners though, owning a private plane is expensive enough already.
- dsfyu404ed 8y ago
  I'm not going to shed any tears over CEOs that suddenly have to get first class flights but being thrown under the bus so that someone else can optimize their political situation does not feel good no matter how minor the slight is in the grand scheme of things.
  - briandear 8y ago
    CEOs aren’t flying Vision jets. The ridiculous attitude that general aviation is somehow a class issue is getting old. Cessna Mustangs and other similar types are used frequently for air ambulance operations as well as plenty of non-CEO uses. General Aviation is a lot more than Sergei flying in his Gulfstream. Look at the 1989 earthquake for example and how GA was a huge part of delivering relief supplies to Watsonville. Look at Angel flights and the value that brings to people. GA is also essential to organ delivery.
  - deleted 8y ago
    [deleted]
- selectodude 8y ago
  Eh, those are $2.5 million+ dollar airplanes. It's technically general aviation but these aren't the GA pilots we need to worry about.
spectramax 8y ago
> Unless the design of the sensor would make it inaccurate after being reassembled (I'm skeptical of this, it wouldn't make sense for a few reasons) this is kind of a dick move to the aircraft owners that they're probably doing in the name of "look how careful we're being" I think your cynicism is uncalled for. FAA found an issue that is life threatening to pilots and passengers, just because pilot/mechanics are aware about how careful they are with their planes, does not mean that you invalidate the actual manufacturing issue that is found with these AOA sensors. "We are aware, we are not stupid, don't tell us what to do." - this is a wrong attitude especially from an Aviation mechanic, unless I am missing something, otherwise please elaborate.
- dsfyu404ed 8y ago
  >I think your cynicism is uncalled for. FAA found an issue that is life threatening to pilots and passengers, just because pilot/mechanics are aware about how careful they are with their planes, does not mean that you invalidate the actual manufacturing issue that is found with these AOA sensors. I'm saying the stupid thing here is that mechanics/owners have to trash the part and wait for a replacement when the fix is to apply locktite and assemble properly (assuming sensor is undamaged) which is something any mechanic can do. Sure it might be life threatening but having a mechanic fix the sensor is no different than having a factory worker assemble the sensor and having the mechanic install it. The "bad" sensors are almost certainly going to be turned in to the company and remanufactured. That process will consist of checking them and if they're good to go then they will be reassembled properly. This is exactly what a mechanic would do only a different person will do each step of the task. >We are aware, we are not stupid, don't tell us what to do." - this is a wrong attitude especially from an Aviation mechanic, unless I am missing something, otherwise please elaborate. What you're missing is that if the fix is simply a properly assembled part then having the mechanic disassemble the part, inspect it per some spec then assemble it per some procedure is not functionally equivalent to a properly manufactured part, it it literally equivalent to what would happen to the part as part of being properly assembled at the factor. If there isn't something special about this sensor that requires factory conditions to get right the FAA is basically calling the mechanics stupid here. They're basically saying a semi-skilled factory worker can be trusted to assemble the part but a mechanic who disassembles and reassembles even more "critical to aircraft function" stuff all day can't be.

toomuchtodo 8y ago

It’s probably the right call from an optics perspective so soon after the 737 MAX fiasco. It’s more expensive than a workbench fix, but cheaper than bad publicity and a loss of faith in FAA governance. It’s a shame the cost is being foisted on GA owners though, owning a private plane is expensive enough already.

dsfyu404ed 8y ago
I'm not going to shed any tears over CEOs that suddenly have to get first class flights but being thrown under the bus so that someone else can optimize their political situation does not feel good no matter how minor the slight is in the grand scheme of things.
- briandear 8y ago
  CEOs aren’t flying Vision jets. The ridiculous attitude that general aviation is somehow a class issue is getting old. Cessna Mustangs and other similar types are used frequently for air ambulance operations as well as plenty of non-CEO uses. General Aviation is a lot more than Sergei flying in his Gulfstream. Look at the 1989 earthquake for example and how GA was a huge part of delivering relief supplies to Watsonville. Look at Angel flights and the value that brings to people. GA is also essential to organ delivery.
- deleted 8y ago
  [deleted]
selectodude 8y ago
Eh, those are $2.5 million+ dollar airplanes. It's technically general aviation but these aren't the GA pilots we need to worry about.

spectramax 8y ago

> Unless the design of the sensor would make it inaccurate after being reassembled (I'm skeptical of this, it wouldn't make sense for a few reasons) this is kind of a dick move to the aircraft owners that they're probably doing in the name of "look how careful we're being" I think your cynicism is uncalled for. FAA found an issue that is life threatening to pilots and passengers, just because pilot/mechanics are aware about how careful they are with their planes, does not mean that you invalidate the actual manufacturing issue that is found with these AOA sensors. "We are aware, we are not stupid, don't tell us what to do." - this is a wrong attitude especially from an Aviation mechanic, unless I am missing something, otherwise please elaborate.

dsfyu404ed 8y ago
>I think your cynicism is uncalled for. FAA found an issue that is life threatening to pilots and passengers, just because pilot/mechanics are aware about how careful they are with their planes, does not mean that you invalidate the actual manufacturing issue that is found with these AOA sensors. I'm saying the stupid thing here is that mechanics/owners have to trash the part and wait for a replacement when the fix is to apply locktite and assemble properly (assuming sensor is undamaged) which is something any mechanic can do. Sure it might be life threatening but having a mechanic fix the sensor is no different than having a factory worker assemble the sensor and having the mechanic install it. The "bad" sensors are almost certainly going to be turned in to the company and remanufactured. That process will consist of checking them and if they're good to go then they will be reassembled properly. This is exactly what a mechanic would do only a different person will do each step of the task. >We are aware, we are not stupid, don't tell us what to do." - this is a wrong attitude especially from an Aviation mechanic, unless I am missing something, otherwise please elaborate. What you're missing is that if the fix is simply a properly assembled part then having the mechanic disassemble the part, inspect it per some spec then assemble it per some procedure is not functionally equivalent to a properly manufactured part, it it literally equivalent to what would happen to the part as part of being properly assembled at the factor. If there isn't something special about this sensor that requires factory conditions to get right the FAA is basically calling the mechanics stupid here. They're basically saying a semi-skilled factory worker can be trusted to assemble the part but a mechanic who disassembles and reassembles even more "critical to aircraft function" stuff all day can't be.