FreqFlyrJr
Pre-Flight
Unlike many of the stories in this section of the forum, this one doesn't include a mistake, violation, or any kind of "oops, I hope I don't do this again" moment.
Back in September, my father and I went to Tampa, Florida to pick up our new aircraft: a Grumman Tiger. She's a beautiful bird that we found after months of searching for the perfect trainer & time builder. We finally found her and quickly had a pre-buy done. Before long, I was on a Delta 737 to Tampa to pick her up. Since then, I've put almost 90 hours on her.
There are two Airworthiness Directives associated with the model of AA-5B that we have. One for Aileron Oscillation and one for a Bendix Ignition switch, both of which are due every 100 hours. We've already chosen a maintenance shop that my father and I like due to the people and availability.
Well, it came time to get the ADs taken care of and the oil change fell right on top of the calendar as well. A short flight took us straight to the mechanics with no problems and a stellar view of Memphis, TN.
Upon arriving at the shop and some short analysis of the fine-text Airworthiness Directive, the mechanic, my father, and I pulled the plane in the hangar.
I spent the next five hours with the mechanic learning how to change the oil, clean things like the carpet and areas under the carpet, and even examining the various hidden panels and features of the aircraft. We worked together on the oil change and I ended up doing a lot of it myself!
He walked me through the Bendix ignition switch AD and let me test the switch (since the AD says that the pilot may comply with the directive). At the end of the day, he surprised me and said he actually didn't have to work much at all, he just talked me through everything that I was allowed to do, and explained to me that I could sign it off myself if I wanted. Of course I wanted to! It was my first oil change. My father showed me how to sign the oil change and AD compliance in the logbooks when we returned from the shop.
I can now say that I've preformed preventative maintenance on my own aircraft and that I know so much more about it that I did before.
If you own an aircraft, I would highly recommend you sitting down with your A&P to learn about the maintenance he does on it. It wouldn't hurt at all to ask if you can help!
This was probably the most enjoyable and exciting ways I could have spent my Friday, and I look forward to our next trip back to the mechanics a little more than my wallet does.
Back in September, my father and I went to Tampa, Florida to pick up our new aircraft: a Grumman Tiger. She's a beautiful bird that we found after months of searching for the perfect trainer & time builder. We finally found her and quickly had a pre-buy done. Before long, I was on a Delta 737 to Tampa to pick her up. Since then, I've put almost 90 hours on her.
There are two Airworthiness Directives associated with the model of AA-5B that we have. One for Aileron Oscillation and one for a Bendix Ignition switch, both of which are due every 100 hours. We've already chosen a maintenance shop that my father and I like due to the people and availability.
Well, it came time to get the ADs taken care of and the oil change fell right on top of the calendar as well. A short flight took us straight to the mechanics with no problems and a stellar view of Memphis, TN.
Upon arriving at the shop and some short analysis of the fine-text Airworthiness Directive, the mechanic, my father, and I pulled the plane in the hangar.
I spent the next five hours with the mechanic learning how to change the oil, clean things like the carpet and areas under the carpet, and even examining the various hidden panels and features of the aircraft. We worked together on the oil change and I ended up doing a lot of it myself!
He walked me through the Bendix ignition switch AD and let me test the switch (since the AD says that the pilot may comply with the directive). At the end of the day, he surprised me and said he actually didn't have to work much at all, he just talked me through everything that I was allowed to do, and explained to me that I could sign it off myself if I wanted. Of course I wanted to! It was my first oil change. My father showed me how to sign the oil change and AD compliance in the logbooks when we returned from the shop.
I can now say that I've preformed preventative maintenance on my own aircraft and that I know so much more about it that I did before.
If you own an aircraft, I would highly recommend you sitting down with your A&P to learn about the maintenance he does on it. It wouldn't hurt at all to ask if you can help!
This was probably the most enjoyable and exciting ways I could have spent my Friday, and I look forward to our next trip back to the mechanics a little more than my wallet does.
