I know almost zero about a Caravan other than they're just a big 206 and they're not great in icing. Obviously icing was not a factor here. It was apparently a training flight so I assume they were empty (as in no cargo or passengers). With a single pilot airplane like a 208 would it be be common to train pilots on a cargo run? I have a lot of questions, I know we'll get the NTSB initial and final reports. Why would a Caravan go out of control on a calm afternoon at near sea level?
Well, in the case above, the elevator was jammed. It didn’t show up until he was near rotation speed, because the fairing is held on by either two or four rivets, can’t remember. Regardless, it looked good on preflight, but the two rivets that were holding the fairing on acted as hinges for the counterweight fairing to slide back and jam the counterweight. I always thought there should be witness tape on the fairing after that.
I apologize for being a dummy, but is this fairing in the cabin or on the exterior of the plane? Most of the counterweights I've seen have been under the floor or tucked away in the tail. Perhaps a picture or diagram of what you're talking about would help.
It is a very thin, light weight aluminum leading edge extension on the outboard leading edge of the elevator. About 5 or 6” long. Who knows if this could have happened here, it would be one of many many things to look at. But if they rolled a can up to the aircraft to unload it, it would be great to see video of that. In the case I mentioned, it was hit and moved back, and apparently pushed back into place by a freight handler. Two of the four rivets were ripped out of the thin aluminum.
I get it, you're talking about how flight controls are aerodynamically balanced and not actual big hunks of lead that live in the parts of airplanes most pilots never see. I thought you were talking about something else. I was once almost fired from a job for insisting that an elevator that had been repaired needed to be rebalanced. Properly balanced control surfaces are nothing to take lightly.
Maybe it immediately started to turn left after they took off.
I'm confused. If a pilot has completed their preflight how does a fairing impede elevator control during or after take off? I'm not an advocate for Hawaiian ground ops (I have stories) but if your supposition is true doesn't it weigh even more heavily to do a thorough preflight? Someone is responsible for this egregious loss of control, but assuming it's a failure on the ground handler seems presumptive. Do you walk around and look at that the airplanes you fly? Do you sign it off? What does that signature mean for you?
