Laser scan testing? You sure about that??
Let's back up a little. Obviously you've never flown or worked with high time airframes. Obviously you're not familiar with the maintenance program for this airplane, or interested enough to find out what it is that you're talking about. So where does that leave you?
Bottom line; if you're not comfortable with the airplane, don't fly it. Period. No discussion. No justification. You have a legal and moral obligation to refuse to fly it if you don't feel comfortable with it, end of story. Comprende?
There's no "laser scan" for that wing. You may be thinking of eddy current testing. However, perhaps you should start by sitting down with the maintenance manual to determine what is actually required for the airplane.
If you're operating under Part 91, then the aircraft is operated on-condition. What you see is what you get, and you're subject only to the inspection requirements spelled out in 14 CFR 91.409.
If you're operating under Part 135, you're also subject to any other approved maintenance program, including regular 100 hour inspections. You may or may not be aware that there is no difference in the scope and detail of the 100 hour inspection, and the annual inspection. If you're only undergoing 100 hour inspections, then you're also undergoing the full scope and detail of an annual inspection every 100 hours.
Are there particular spar inspections or wing inspections detailed by cycles, landings, hours, callendar time, or other criteria for your airplane, by the manufacturer? Have you checked?
You mentioned smoking rivets. How have you determined if it's the rivet that's smoking, or if it's grease or other substances leaking at the rivet hole? A true smoking rivet is caused by fretting corrosion. Fluid, grease, fuel, etc, leaking past a rivet is not a smoking rivet, but may appear similiar.
Are the rivets in question on the wing? At what point on the wing, and what is their significance?
If you have any question about the airplane, don't fly it. You take full responsibility for the airplane, including it's airworthiness, when you fly it. If you didn't know, when it comes out of maintenance, a mechanic may approve an airplane for return to service, but it's the pilot who actually returns it to service. That would be you, and in so doing, you take responsibility for accepting and approving all the work that has been done to that airplane, including agreeing with, ratifying, and accepting responsibility for all work, airworthiness directives, and other compliance required. Are you comfortable accepting that responsibility with the airplane in it's present condition? No? Then do not fly it.
I took a flight for a company last week in a medium turboprop airplane. During one leg of the trip, toward the end of the trip, I found a line of rivets attaching a wing skin to the spar cap, fretted away, with the skin lifted up along the rivet line. I grounded the airplane, and the following day made arrangements for a repair station to do a spar inspection, full eddy current workup, and repairs.
A few years ago, I encountered two small cracks in the underskin of the wing of a large airplane I was flying. Subsequent testing of that wing revealed via ultrasonic testing a crack extending the full circumference of the wing, including through all major supporting structures. Had I or others been willing to continue flying that airplane, there is no doubt in my mind but that the wing would have failed within the next flight or two.
Those assertions are further strengthened in the knowledge that the same airplane was destroyed a few years later when both wings did separate in flight.
Don't screw around...you don't feel comfortable, you don't fly it, period. Forget weather your job is at stake. Your job is meaningless in the face of safety; safety first, profitability a distant third. You decide what comes next.
) ... It might be in the great shape (Which I doubt it) but there is no way to verify ... (oh, did I say we have lotsa smoking rivets?) I know FAA is working on an AD for 300 series but it will not be out for another year
