AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2017 - 102
P&E
SAVVY
toward the San Juan Islands. Shortly
thereafter, the pilot observed rpm
increasing. He pulled back the prop control, but rpm continued to rise. He then
throttled back, couldn't control the prop
overspeed, and then heard a loud bang
from the engine followed by smoke in the
cockpit and loss of engine power.
The pilot was now over Lopez Island,
east of San Juan Island, and attempted to
reach a small airstrip on that island but
quickly determined he couldn't make it. He
initiated a forced landing on a nearby road,
had to pull up at the last minute to avoid a
vehicle, and then landed on the road but
had the left wing strike a wooden fence
post, resulting in substantial structural
damage to the left wing and twisting and
buckling of the empennage. The four occupants were treated for scrapes and bruises
by the Lopez Island Fire Department.
I can't help asking what possessed this
pilot to conduct his initial post-maintenance test flight (immediately following
an extensive engine teardown and propeller overhaul) on an overwater flight with a
cabin full of passengers, including young
children. Did he conduct this flight with
the appropriate "test-pilot mindset"?
FAR 91.407(b) requires a post-maintenance test flight (without passengers)
whenever the aircraft has undergone
maintenance "in a manner that may
have appreciably changed its flight characteristics or substantially affected its
operation in flight." Exactly what kind
of maintenance meets this definition?
Who makes the call whether a postmaintenance test flight is required? The
regulation doesn't say.
In a perfect world, a conscientious
mechanic would counsel the owner to
perform a post-maintenance test flight,
but that rarely happens. Nothing in the
federal aviation regulations suggests that
a mechanic has any regulatory obligation
to offer such counsel. Since 91.407(b) is in
Part 91 (which speaks to owners) rather
than in Part 43 (which speaks to mechanics), I think it's clear the FAA looks to the
owner, not the mechanic, to make the call.
Certain kinds of maintenance-horsepower increase, speed modifications,
STOL kit, et cetera-obviously require a
102 | AOPA PILOT August 2017
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