Cracked spars on Seneca's

[ParrotheadPilot]

The Seneca I at the FBO where I fly had the same problem. The left wing spar was replaced last year, and the right wing spar was replaced a couple of months ago. I guess both were cracked pretty bad. So not just in Seneca II's....

 

[SENECAII]

Interesting thread

 

[n757st]

Any additional word about anything that might come of this? I work for an operator that runs a bunch of Seneca II's for charter, and if this ever did turn into an AD it could severly affect our operation. Thanks!

 

[n757st]

double post

 

[Yellow Snow]

The gear trunion AD has been around a while. I used to have to do a visual inspection of the lower wing surface before each flight. There is a repair for the gear problems. A mechanic at the flight school where I trained said if the gear repairs weren't done on the senecas that it would lead to spar cracks. The gear fix involved heavier trunion hardware and a spar doubler at the attachment area. I cannot be quoted on this because I was a student not a mechanic but I remember this inspection requirement starting in 2000 during my multi training.

 

[Yellow Snow]

It probably doesn't help that senecas are fairly hard to land well and lots of people seem to plop them in pretty hard. When I moved from Florida I found a local flight school advertising a seneca so I went by to ask about renting it some. When I got there and asked, the instructor said I was too late someone had dropped theirs in from about ten feet and driven the gear right through the wings.

 

[JRSLim]

This just happened to a friend of mine who flies a Seneca II. All but one of the bolts had sheared off and the mechanic almost had the gear collapse driving it into the hangar.

We DID have the gear collapse-- the trunion bolt was never found so we can't tell if it was failure or had come loose. luckily it was on post- flight taxi, I try not to think of what would have happened if it would have gone south on landing..

 

[n757st]

Thanks guys, I have a couple hundred hours in Senecas and I was aware of the upcoming AD involving the forward gear, I just had not heard anything involving wing spars and gear trunions until now. If anyone has especially any info on what the CAA did with this flight school in england though that would be interesting to hear. I would think that if the CAA was to require inspections that the FAA could not be too far behind.

 

[Lear60Guy]

Same thing happened at a firm where I flew some time ago. Several pilots at a particular station who were flying Seneca II and III airplanes called me to tell me about an aircraft that made a popping sound each time they applied flaps on the base leg.

thats interesting, an archer i often fly sometimes (not always) has a popping sound when the flaps are applied on base. Somebody had told me that is just the flaps moving around in the tracks, i wonder if its something that should be looked at a little closer...

 

[joe_pilot]

We DID have the gear collapse-- the trunion bolt was never found so we can't tell if it was failure or had come loose. luckily it was on post- flight taxi, I try not to think of what would have happened if it would have gone south on landing..

Shaun,

We have something in common. I had the right main collapse on rollout doing about 70 knots. Luckily it fell in and aft between the flap and the runway. There was a 600 foot skidmark that ended about 2 inches from the right edge of the runway. Whew!! Plane was still parallel with the centerline, I must say. Can you say "left rudder"?

Seriously though, this thread makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up.

-J