Vic Syracuse
Vic is a fixed-wing and helicopter commercial pilot, CFII with ASMEL/ASES ratings, an A&P/IA, DAR, and EAA technical advisor and flight counselor. Passionately involved in aviation for over 40 years, he has built 11 aircraft and logged over 10,000 hours in 72 different kinds of aircraft. Vic volunteers as a Young Eagle pilot, has his own sport aviation business called Base Leg Aviation, and has written two books on aircraft prebuy and condition inspections.
Horizontal Stabilizer Crack
In 2014 Van’s Aircraft put out a service bulletin for potential cracking in the horizontal stabilizers of the RV-6, RV-7 and RV-8 series of...
Turnbuckle Safety Wire
Turnbuckles are usually used in control systems to apply the proper amount of tension to the cables. It is extremely important to ensure that...
Leaky Static Lines
Ever wonder why static systems often start to leak after a couple of years? See the little plastic insert between the two tubes in...
Missing Rivets
This is the root rib on a horizontal stabilizer. The rivets that fasten the rib to the spar are completely missing!
Jam Nut Triple Threat
Jam nuts serve a purpose and that is to prevent actuating arms from becoming disconnected. I found three examples on the same airplane. Two...
Past Due ELT Batteries
There is a requirement for an annual ELT check to be entered into the aircraft logbooks. The batteries must be replaced prior to the...
Rotax Training for the 9 Series
Lockwood Aviation helps you get a full understanding of the four-stroke Rotax.
Low Compression
Usually, we look for something greater than 60/80 when doing compression checks on Lycoming engines. A reading such as this one (36/80) really warrants...
Alternate Air Opening
This was discovered on an aircraft during a condition inspection. It really was a poor installation. Nonetheless, the aircraft had been operating on unfiltered...
Missing ELT Batteries
Many aircraft owners don’t realize that some ELT control panels and audio alerters have their own separate batteries, which must be installed at installation...
In Case You Missed It
Viewfinder
Burt Rutan’s 1980s Catbird was originally designed for the CAFE Foundation fuel-efficiency competition, but Marc Cook wonders whether it might make a fine homebuilt kit aircraft today.
Vortex Generators for Cooling
A simple fix reduced CHTs in a Velocity by 55 degrees. By David G. Ullman.
Letters
Onex is LSA-EligibleLike everyone in aviation, we strive for perfection and occasionally fall short....
The Home Machinist
Phillips? Flat head? Double blade? Bob Fritz clears up questions you didn't even know you had about screwdrivers. When you're building a plane, the right tool for the right job (and right space) really does matter.