SAIB CE-03-48 —

SAIB CE-03-48 Current Issued 08/08/2003 Schempp-Hirth Flugzeugbau Duo Discus T gliders (serial numbers 1 through 78)

What is a SAIB?

A Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin is an FAA-issued advisory — not mandatory like an AD, but worth knowing about. SAIBs typically flag service bulletins, manufacturer recommendations, or emerging issues that don't (yet) rise to AD level.

Bulletin text

Verbatim from the FAA-published PDF. 22 paragraphs · 310 words.

1 SPECIAL AIRWORTHINESS INFORMATION BULLETIN

Aircraft Certification Service Washington, DC

U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Aviation Administration

No. CE-03-48 August 8, 2003 We post SAIBs on the internet at www.airweb.faa.gov This is information only. Recommendations are not mandatory.

Introduction This Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin (SAIB) alerts you, an owner or operator of the SCHEMPP-HIRTH Model Duo Discus T gliders (serial numbers 1 through 78), that Luftfahrt- Bundesamt (LBA) has issued an Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2003-245/2, dated August 1, 2003. The LBA AD and SCHEMPP-HIRTH technical notes require an immediate inspection of the upper spar cap and the spar web before further flight.

Background The LBA has reported an in-flight failure of the wing structure at maneuvering loads. Initial analysis indicates failure in the bonding of the wing spar cap and spar web. SCHEMPP-HIRTH has received additional reports of bonding problems of the wing spar cap and spar web. Failure of the bonding, if not detected and corrected, could result in an in-flight separation of the wing from the glider.

Recommendation We recommend that registered owners of gliders SCHEMPP-HIRTH Model Duo Discus T accomplish the actions of SCHEMPP-HIRTH Flugzeugbau GmbH. Hircheim/Teck Technical Note No. 396-8, No. 890-3, dated August 1, 2003; and SCHEMPP-HIRTH Flugzeugbau GmbH. Hircheim/Teck Appendix to Technical Note No. 396-8 / No. 890-3, dated August 1, 2003. The technical notes are attached.

We are providing this information as a courtesy to owners and operators as we do not issue ADs for gliders that do not have a U.S. type certificate.

For Further Information Contact Gregory Davidson, Aerospace Engineer, FAA, Small Airplane Directorate, Room 301, 901 Locust, Kansas City, Missouri 64106; telephone: (816) 329-4130; facsimile: (816) 329-4090; email [email protected]

SCHEMPP-HIRTH Flugzeugbau GmbH, Postfach 1443, 73222 Kircheim/Teck, Federal Republic of Germany; telephone: 49 7021 7298-0; facsimile: 49 7021 7298-199.

The FAA-published PDF is the authoritative source. Open on drs.faa.gov ↗