Aircraft Annual Inspection Complete!

My son, Sam, and I at the SIL hangarYaounde, Cameroon

From chief pilot, Rob:

"Yes, the annual inspection is completed.  I’m again very thankful for the resources and help of SIL- Cameroon. Without them we would be in a tough spot. It was honestly a pretty heavy inspection with a good bit more work than I had anticipated (40+ discrepancies) ..and I’m realizing that there is still additional refining to do.Beyond the annual inspection and routine servicing we addressed a number of issues on the airplane.  

CYLINDERS

We did have to replace 1 cylinder due to low compression and I am working with JAARS to…

...expedite the repair to two more cylinders that I expect to need changing by the next 100hr inspection. 

We have now changed 4 cylinders since getting the operating temperatures down.  Those cylinders are doing well. The one we replaced at this inspection was replaced at 250 hr (Jan 2012 I think) but after 250 more hours at the high temps, [it's ready to be changed].  

From the inside of the tail looking forward-
an annual inspection is very invasive!

ODDS & ENDS

We changed the mixture control cable that was no longer holding it’s position, as well as the tach cable that was frayed through.  Steve replaced a vent tube that had torn and was causing a whistle in the cabin (not an easy job). We completed 500 hour major inspections on both magnetos and I am pleased with their service and condition. We continue to replace a number of rivnut and nut plates that have stripped so that screws don’t come loose, we balanced the prop (it was not bad but we got it better).  

Cabin interior- seats removed; all panels open!

SHOWING HER AGE

Our impression is that the fuel tubing (rigid aluminum) is aging. We have already replaced some of the lines at previous inspections and I may order additional tubing so that we can continue to refresh certain lines – especially if the connections we addressed at this inspection continue to give us problems. 

WIth Rob (right), chief pilot, chief of maintenance,
Bongolo base manager… and the list goes on!

We rebuilt the nose strut with new seals. It was starting to show hydraulic fluid on the strut.  As good news, we didn’t have to replace any wheel bearings or races at this inspection. Hangaring the airplane is helping!"

Note: Inspection was complete by 10 January and already Rob has had nearly 10 flights!