Maintence test flights.

[USMCmech]

Have any of you guys been involved in test flying aircraft after they come out of heavy checks?

I'm curious about how those go.

Here at SAA, some cutomers fly a test flight and then fly it home. While some just fly them away. It depends on the amount/types of repairs done.

 

[mtsu_av8er]

I fly DA-20's, 172's and PA-28's all the time, right out of heavy checks!!!

Does that count?

 

[shinysideup]

Used to do alot of them at the the flight school I worked at. 152, 172, 182, t206, seneca, arrow, cherokee 6, DV-20s....

Then did Mx flights in SR-22s and a Baron at a later job

 

[MQAAord]

My dad does all his own maintenance flights.

He's not only an A&P IA but also a commercial single & multi-engine pilot with a instrument rating. Part of the 'deal' when he was the DOM at a flight school was that all the maintenance flights were his. Pissed off the instructors who wanted that 310 time for themselves!

 

[USMCmech]

[ QUOTE ]
My dad does all his own maintenance flights.

He's not only an A&P IA but also a commercial single & multi-engine pilot with a instrument rating. Part of the 'deal' when he was the DOM at a flight school was that all the maintenance flights were his. Pissed off the instructors who wanted that 310 time for themselves!

[/ QUOTE ]

That's what I will do whenever I have my own shop.

What I was mainly asking about was heavy checks on larger planes. Airliners, transports, ect.

I flew on a few FCF flights in helos, but once you have spun the rotors and lifted into hover the risky part has passed. If something did go wrong, you only have to set it back down quickly.

On an airliner, there are so many seperate things working together that the pilots can't even look at, much less controll. I would find the first test flight after an overhaul very nerve racking.

 

[MikeD]

FCF/OCF is a pain in the ass.........

 

[flyinyourShorts]

I use to do them on both the Convair 580(turbine) and the Convair 240(piston). We had so many problems with airplanes comming out of MX the FAA made us designate MX test pilots.... I was dumb enough to volunteer

Most of the big things we did were MX ferries and testing for reoccuring problems. I can't tell you how many times I flew this one 580 with the gear down to have a false unlocked light fixed! Some of the flights were fun, and some of them(mostly in the 240) were scary. But, the experience looks good on the resume and you learn alot about the airplane doing those flights. My first question before taking those flights was to ask if the mechanic that signed off the airplane would care to go with us!

Then there were the training flights...... but that's a story for another thread.

 

[typhoonpilot]

[ QUOTE ]
Have any of you guys been involved in test flying aircraft after they come out of heavy checks?

I'm curious about how those go.

Here at SAA, some cutomers fly a test flight and then fly it home. While some just fly them away. It depends on the amount/types of repairs done.

[/ QUOTE ]


I've done something slightly different. I was involved in some of the first flights of aircraft out of the factory. The process was a bit lengthier than a test flight after a heavy check. We would start with " Ground runs " that lasted about 4 hours and included all the initial power up of electrical and hydraulic systems as well as some of the alternate means of powering those systems. It would then progress to taxi tests and high speed ground runs. Any squawks from that process would be fixed and then a day or two later the first flight would take place. A book called the Performance Flight Procedures Manual was used to record all the parameters during the flight. Everything that could be tested was tested, and the flight would take about 4 hours.

When I say everything that could be tested, I do mean everything. We would let the cabin climb up to 10,000 feet to make sure the Cabin Altitude warning came on within it's tolerance band then let it keep going until the oxygen masks came out at the appropriate time. A lot of trim checks in the clean and landing configuration. Slow speed flight to check the Stall Warning and Stick Shaker then high speed flight to check the overspeed clacker. A series of approaches and landings to check most modes of the GPWS as well as the Autoland. It is a very busy flight and best done with three guys so that one can just do the writing in the PFPM.

The PFPM became part of the aircraft's permanent records prior to the Airworthiness Certificate being issued. If you are doing test flights after heavy maintenance checks it is a great document to reference in order to come up with a good test flight plan to check the major systems.


Typhoonpilot