Proposed SZD-55 EASA AD now out for comment - "Flight Controls – Elevator Control System / Vertical Tail – Inspection"

Why would someone do that? Can a 55 owner provide some context? Is there some rigging difficulty they were trying to resolve?

On Saturday, March 24, 2018 at 1:37:36 AM UTC-4, wrote:
Why would someone do that? Can a 55 owner provide some context? Is there some rigging difficulty they were trying to resolve?

The UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch published a thorough 22 page report. https://www.gov.uk/aaib-reports/aaib...zd-55-1-g-cklr

On Saturday, March 24, 2018 at 9:07:25 AM UTC-4, Dan Daly wrote:

The UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch published a thorough 22 page report. https://www.gov.uk/aaib-reports/aaib...zd-55-1-g-cklr

From that report:

"In a photograph taken in July 2006 while this repair was being carried out, the enlarged elevator lever slot in the horizontal rib of the tail fin is clearly visible, indicating that it had been modified prior to this point."

'Accident waiting to happen' for 12 years.

When I bought my SZD glider, I found that the previous owner had removed ~10 lbs of factory installed lead ballast from the nose. The ballast mount location was hidden behind an access panel.

The horizontal stabilizer attachment on the 55 is one of the easiest designs I have seen and I never had a problem installing it. It went on perfectly and easily every time.
I have a totally unsubstantiated theory about what may have happened. I am wondering if material was removed at the 3000 hour inspection for the insertion of a borescope and never replaced?
Tragic none the less.

Bob 7U


On Saturday, March 24, 2018 at 10:15:36 AM UTC-4, son_of_flubber wrote:
On Saturday, March 24, 2018 at 9:07:25 AM UTC-4, Dan Daly wrote:

The UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch published a thorough 22 page report. https://www.gov.uk/aaib-reports/aaib...zd-55-1-g-cklr

From that report:

"In a photograph taken in July 2006 while this repair was being carried out, the enlarged elevator lever slot in the horizontal rib of the tail fin is clearly visible, indicating that it had been modified prior to this point."

'Accident waiting to happen' for 12 years.

When I bought my SZD glider, I found that the previous owner had removed ~10 lbs of factory installed lead ballast from the nose. The ballast mount location was hidden behind an access panel.

On Saturday, March 24, 2018 at 11:10:49 AM UTC-4, wrote:
The horizontal stabilizer attachment on the 55 is one of the easiest designs I have seen and I never had a problem installing it. It went on perfectly and easily every time.
I have a totally unsubstantiated theory about what may have happened. I am wondering if material was removed at the 3000 hour inspection for the insertion of a borescope and never replaced?
Tragic none the less.

Bob 7U


On Saturday, March 24, 2018 at 10:15:36 AM UTC-4, son_of_flubber wrote:
On Saturday, March 24, 2018 at 9:07:25 AM UTC-4, Dan Daly wrote:

The UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch published a thorough 22 page report. https://www.gov.uk/aaib-reports/aaib...zd-55-1-g-cklr

From that report:

"In a photograph taken in July 2006 while this repair was being carried out, the enlarged elevator lever slot in the horizontal rib of the tail fin is clearly visible, indicating that it had been modified prior to this point."

'Accident waiting to happen' for 12 years.

When I bought my SZD glider, I found that the previous owner had removed ~10 lbs of factory installed lead ballast from the nose. The ballast mount location was hidden behind an access panel.

Somebody modified this glider, I think. Never before I saw opening on upper surface level.Maybe somebody had a problem with rigging ?
If elevator is trimmed all the way back it would be hard or impossible to install horizontal.
Maybe somebody's solution for this,was to cut opening.
Ryszard

On Saturday, March 24, 2018 at 10:15:36 AM UTC-4, son_of_flubber wrote:
When I bought my SZD glider, I found that the previous owner had removed ~10 lbs of factory installed lead ballast from the nose. The ballast mount location was hidden behind an access panel.

- when I bought my Russia it came with 9 pounds of lead shot / epoxy mix permanently mounted in the nose, hidden behind the front bulkhead panel. Thankfully the seller told me about it. (And for me flying it, I had to add even more ballast in another forward location.) Be careful with the W&B!

I took delivery of a brand new Ventus 2c, had the W&B done for my weight plus chute. Took the glider for it's first flight and thank goodness it was a great soaring day as it took me about two hours to be able to control it between 45-75 knots. Turns out they figured out the correct weight, say 5 pounds, wrote it in log book, but when they actually the weight in they used Kilograms, so I had 5 kg instead of 5 lb in tail. We figured it out, but I forgot the number, I was WELL aft of the aft most CG. I agree, check W&B.

Hey, great way to get current in major departure stalls/spin entries!
Yep, I did that unintentionally once.
Just once.
With the sailplane owner watching me do "over the top spin entries" at altitude.
Yes, I recovered.....sorta obvious.
Yes, most aircraft flown well beyond the aft CG limit becomes "sporty" at a minimum. Glad I figured it out at altitude.
Sigh.

Yep, ask NASA about changes in unit of measurement, they wasted a mars lander due to that......sigh.....meters vs. feet.....

You guys could just join the rest of the world and go metric!

On Saturday, March 24, 2018 at 4:05:06 PM UTC-5, Jonathan St. Cloud wrote:
I took delivery of a brand new Ventus 2c, had the W&B done for my weight plus chute. Took the glider for it's first flight and thank goodness it was a great soaring day as it took me about two hours to be able to control it between 45-75 knots. Turns out they figured out the correct weight, say 5 pounds, wrote it in log book, but when they actually the weight in they used Kilograms, so I had 5 kg instead of 5 lb in tail. We figured it out, but I forgot the number, I was WELL aft of the aft most CG. I agree, check W&B.


On Saturday, March 24, 2018 at 9:28:27 AM UTC-7, wrote:
On Saturday, March 24, 2018 at 10:15:36 AM UTC-4, son_of_flubber wrote:
When I bought my SZD glider, I found that the previous owner had removed ~10 lbs of factory installed lead ballast from the nose. The ballast mount location was hidden behind an access panel.

- when I bought my Russia it came with 9 pounds of lead shot / epoxy mix permanently mounted in the nose, hidden behind the front bulkhead panel. Thankfully the seller told me about it. (And for me flying it, I had to add even more ballast in another forward location.) Be careful with the W&B!

Earth to Dan Marotta: here's another great reason to go metric, don't ya think? Glad you survived the Kilo-Bomb, Jonathan.