Flight Safety Foundation Aviation Mechanics Bulletin 2004

These publications are in Adobe^® Portable Document Format (PDF) and require a copy of Adobe Reader^®. If you do not have a copy of Adobe Reader, you can download and install a free copy from http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2_allversions.html.

November–December 2004

Improper Inflation Cited in Six Tire-failure Incidents 24 pages. [PDF 391K]

The U.K. Air Accidents Investigation Branch said that more frequent monitoring of tire pressure would increase chances of identifying a seriously underinflated tire before a tire failure occurred.

September–October 2004

Aircraft Wiring Incidents Persist in Aging Systems 24 pages. [PDF 827K]

The U.K. Air Accidents Investigation Branch cited four recent incidents in which wiring problems were associated with aging aircraft electrical systems and/or maintenance issues.

July–August 2004

Fall-protection Equipment Safeguards Maintenance Personnel Working at Height 24 pages. [PDF 385K]

Protective systems, including guardrails, safety lanyards and shock-absorbing safety harnesses, are designed to prevent falls.

May–June 2004

‘Rigorous’ Maintenance Programs Recommended for Fire Fighting Aircraft 24 pages. [PDF 204K]

Citing three accidents in which fire fighting airplanes broke apart during flight, the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board said that maintenance programs had not considered the unique problems that affected these specialized aircraft, including their typical high time in service and the stresses of their operating environment.

March–April 2004

Use of Incorrect Rivets Blamed for Separation of Engine Cowling 24 pages. [PDF 274K]

The U.K. Air Accidents Investigation Branch said that the correct rivets on a fi tting on one of the Boeing 747’s engines had been replaced with others that ‘failed to serve the design purpose.’ When the fi tting failed, a large section of the engine cowling fell from the airplane onto a runway shortly after a landing in Manchester, England.

January–February 2004

Faulty Shift Handoff Cited in Failure to Close B-747 Static Lines 24 pages. [PDF 304K]

The Irish Air Accident Investigation Unit said that an ‘unstructured system of shift handover’ during weekends resulted in an inadequate exchange of information between workers on two shifts about incomplete tasks. The failure to re-install static drain blanking caps caused erroneous indications of airspeed and altitude that prompted the flight crew to declare an emergency.