SAIB SW-04-92 —

SAIB SW-04-92 Current Issued 09/30/2004 Bell Helicopter Textron 206A | 206B | 206L | 206L-1 | 206L-3 | 206L-4 | 407

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. 14 paragraphs · 339 words.

1 SPECIAL AIRWORTHINESS INFORMATION BULLETIN

Aircraft Certification Service Washington, DC

U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Aviation Administration

SW-04-92 September 30, 2004 www.faa.gov/certification/aircraft This is information only. Recommendations aren’t mandatory.

Introduction

This Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin alerts you, owners and operators of certain Bell Helicopter Textron rotorcraft models (listed below) with Outerlink Corporation CP-2 Satcom System installed when the CP-2 receive antenna is installed in accordance with Outerlink Corporation drawing no. N000-1633, or similar design, of possible antenna mount failure.

Bell Helicopter Textron 206A installed per STC SR00120BO 206B installed per STC SR00120BO 206L installed per STC SR00120BO 206L-1 installed per STC SR00120BO 206L-3 installed per STC SR00120BO 206L-4 installed per STC SR00120BO 407 installed per FAA Field Approval

Background

During a preflight inspection, the pilot of a Bell 206 discovered that the mounting bracket for the CP 2 Satcom receive antenna had separated from the helicopter due to vibration fatigue. The antenna mount is typically fabricated by the installing agency from 2024-T3 0.040" thick sheet aluminum. It is installed on the fin cap of the vertical fin using eight blind fasteners. The antenna coax was torn from the antenna upon separation of the antenna from the tail. Fortunately, the antenna mount didn’t make contact with the tail rotor. Approximately 3000 flight hours had accumulated on the helicopter since the CP-2 system was installed.

Recommendations

We highly recommend that you use a 10x magnifying glass and immediately inspect the CP-2 receive antenna mounting bracket for signs of fatigue cracking in the area along and directly above the rivet line where the bracket mounts to the vertical tail fin cap. You should repeat inspections every 25-50 flight hours or until the bracket is permanently removed from the rotorcraft. The STC holder is currently investigating other alternatives for mounting the CP-2 Satcom antenna.

2 We will continue monitoring this safety issue and may take further action such as issuing an AD in the future.

For Further Information Contact

Richard Spencer, Aerospace Engineer, ANE-150, Boston Aircraft Certification Office: phone: (781) 238-7184: email: [email protected]

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