Boeing767mech From United States of America, joined Dec 2000, 992 posts, RR: 3 Posted (5 years 9 months 2 weeks 3 days 14 hours ago) and read 3631 times:
Here's a silly one for you.
What is the most unusual or silly thing you had to do to get a airplane moved or out on a flight?
My example 6 of us had to jump up and down to get the outer wing tank to drain down to the middle wing on a DC-10, because the float switch in the middle tank did not open letting the fuel out of the outer wing tank. The APU had been running all night burning all the fuel out of the mid tank. The look on the supervisors face was classic, he was a new guy and didn't know the DC-10, for that point I didn't either but we bounced the wing and got the fuel to move down to the mid tank.
Lowrider From United States of America, joined Jun 2004, 3220 posts, RR: 11 Reply 1, posted (5 years 9 months 2 weeks 3 days 14 hours ago) and read 3622 times:
Jumping up and down at about row 6 in a Beech 1900 to free a stuck flap drive. The motor and drive assembly is located under the floor there.
HAWK21M From India, joined Jan 2001, 31201 posts, RR: 58 Reply 2, posted (5 years 9 months 2 weeks 3 days 13 hours ago) and read 3608 times:
Off loading a few Main deck Pallet using a lashing tied to a Tractor as the MDL Power driven units had become u/s.
Ground ops was stuck on Ideas,luckily Mx was not
regds
MEL
SlamClick From United States of America, joined Nov 2003, 10062 posts, RR: 71 Reply 3, posted (5 years 9 months 2 weeks 3 days 12 hours ago) and read 3563 times:
Crouch under a DC-9 to pull the APU inlet door to the "ram" position so the APU start sequence would begin. Alternative: Another long cold day in a place I didn't want to be in the first place.
* * *
Making a running takeoff in a skid-mounted helicopter. We topped off the fuel on a hot day in a place above the HIGE ceiling of the anemic Hiller. Slid along in the gravel for a hundred yards before going through translation and lifting off.
* * *
Run the rotor RPM to the upper redline, snatch the helicopter off the ground and hover over a few feet as the RPM bled off and we eventually settled back onto the ground.
Repeat.
Eventually I was able to hover off a cliff and trade the sudden altitude for some rotor RPM. Flew away in smart fashion.
* * *
Stop, set parking brake.
Shut down left engine.
Offload passengers with right engine running.
Crossbleed start left engine.
Shut down right engine.
Offload bags.
Load outbound bags.
Crossbleed start right engine.
Shut down left engine.
Board passengers.
Crossbleed start left engine.
Taxi away.
* * *
Sober up.
Relax you FAA guys, it wasn't in your jurisdiction. You don't want to know. Besides I made this up.
* * *
Hang on with one hand under the panel to keep my seat from tipping over.
That's enough. I'm starting to scare myself.
Happiness is not seeing another trite Ste. Maarten photo all week long.
WrenchBender From Canada, joined Feb 2004, 1779 posts, RR: 9 Reply 4, posted (5 years 9 months 2 weeks 3 days 8 hours ago) and read 3495 times:
Quoting SlamClick (Reply 3): Stop, set parking brake.
Shut down left engine.
Offload passengers with right engine running.
Crossbleed start left engine.
Shut down right engine.
Offload bags.
Load outbound bags.
Crossbleed start right engine.
Shut down left engine.
Board passengers.
Crossbleed start left engine.
Taxi away.
Seen similar to De-Ice a Herc with a tits up GTC/APU and no air start in Yellowknife.
Towed a Chinook with a 5 Ton gravel truck.
Jacked A/C while underway onboard ship for retraction test (very stupid on a small ship (<5Ktons)
Cancidas From Poland, joined Jul 2003, 4112 posts, RR: 13 Reply 5, posted (5 years 9 months 2 weeks 3 days 6 hours ago) and read 3446 times:
Quoting SlamClick (Reply 3): Stop, set parking brake.
Shut down left engine.
Offload passengers with right engine running.
Crossbleed start left engine.
Shut down right engine.
Offload bags.
Load outbound bags.
Crossbleed start right engine.
Shut down left engine.
Board passengers.
Crossbleed start left engine.
Taxi away.
done that numerous times, just your list seems a little short. assuming you have FOB, then you can do it your way. for us it was like this:
stop, park.
shut down #1, deplane pax, offload and load cargo, board pax.
crossbleed start #1, shutdown #2 and fuel.
pushback with #1 spinning and crossbleed #2.
last time we did that with a CRJ-700. 67 pax, 92 bags, 12000 lb of fuel in 28 minutes.
"...cannot the kingdom of salvation take me home."
HAWK21M From India, joined Jan 2001, 31201 posts, RR: 58 Reply 6, posted (5 years 9 months 2 weeks 3 days 3 hours ago) and read 3373 times:
Using a trestle to access the APU inlet door on the RH side of a B737 to tap it in ,ensuring the microswitch contacts to continue the start sequence.As readjusting the sw rigging would be done at the long halt.
regds
MEL
TheGreatChecko From United States of America, joined Mar 2004, 1110 posts, RR: 3 Reply 7, posted (5 years 9 months 2 weeks 3 days 2 hours ago) and read 3355 times:
Things I've seen done to get a 1900 moving:
Rocked back an forth by pushing on the wings to help crack ice that has frozen the brakes when the brake deice is inop.
Watched a 1900 slide around on the ice outside a terminal for the same reason.
Lesson learned: "Don't taxi through snow piles if you can avoid it!"
Checko
"A pilot's plane she is. She will love you if you deserve it, and try to kill you if you don't...She is the Mighty Q400"
Tristarsteve From Sweden, joined Nov 2005, 3690 posts, RR: 34 Reply 8, posted (5 years 9 months 2 weeks 2 days 21 hours ago) and read 3291 times:
Quoting HAWK21M (Reply 6): Using a trestle to access the APU inlet door on the RH side of a B737 to tap it in ,ensuring the microswitch contacts to continue the start sequence.
A yard broom out of the R2 door used to do the trick for me. When we had B732 I kept one in the van.
Not quite in the same vein but, In the early 80s Gulf Air had two US registered Tristars, N92TA and N92TB. These were run under an FAA log book/MEL etc. One of them had a defect with the Slat PDU (sorry can't remember what) and had a 3 day MEL which ran out Thursday. Under CAA rules, which the other L1011 were under this was an unlimited time defect(in those days). We had to approach the FAA in FRA for a disp to continue to fly the aircraft until we got a new slat PDU due Sat. No answer. So on Thursday afternoon Colin and I interchanged the slat PDUs with another L1011 to get both aircraft flying Thursday night (when the whole fleet was in the air).
Boeing767mech From United States of America, joined Dec 2000, 992 posts, RR: 3 Reply 10, posted (5 years 9 months 2 weeks 2 days 17 hours ago) and read 3194 times:
Quoting Tristarsteve (Reply 8): Not quite in the same vein but, In the early 80s Gulf Air had two US registered Tristars, N92TA and N92TB. These were run under an FAA log book/MEL etc. One of them had a defect with the Slat PDU (sorry can't remember what) and had a 3 day MEL which ran out Thursday. Under CAA rules, which the other L1011 were under this was an unlimited time defect(in those days). We had to approach the FAA in FRA for a disp to continue to fly the aircraft until we got a new slat PDU due Sat. No answer. So on Thursday afternoon Colin and I interchanged the slat PDUs with another L1011 to get both aircraft flying Thursday night (when the whole fleet was in the air).
Aero California used to have mobile MEL's like that,I heard guys taking the bad parts off one airplane and putting it on another and clearing the placard on the first airplane and openning it up on the one with the bad part.
474218 From United States of America, joined Oct 2005, 6340 posts, RR: 10 Reply 11, posted (5 years 9 months 2 weeks 2 days 11 hours ago) and read 3098 times:
Quoting Tristarsteve (Reply 8): Not quite in the same vein but, In the early 80s Gulf Air had two US registered Tristars, N92TA and N92TB. These were run under an FAA log book/MEL etc. One of them had a defect with the Slat PDU (sorry can't remember what) and had a 3 day MEL which ran out Thursday. Under CAA rules, which the other L1011 were under this was an unlimited time defect(in those days). We had to approach the FAA in FRA for a disp to continue to fly the aircraft until we got a new slat PDU due Sat. No answer. So on Thursday afternoon Colin and I interchanged the slat PDUs with another L1011 to get both aircraft flying Thursday night (when the whole fleet was in the air).
Good story Steve; However, the only part of the L-1011 slat system that has MEL relief is the indicating system. If the PDU was inoperative you can not dispatch a TriStar as it must have the slats operational.
SlamClick From United States of America, joined Nov 2003, 10062 posts, RR: 71 Reply 12, posted (5 years 9 months 2 weeks 2 days 11 hours ago) and read 3094 times:
Quoting DeltaGuy (Reply 9): Moved a P-51 with a John Deere tractor and a chain
Moved an L-188 with a puny old half-ton Chevy pickup. Moving it was not a problem. Stopping it was.
Happiness is not seeing another trite Ste. Maarten photo all week long.
Pilotpip From United States of America, joined Sep 2003, 3082 posts, RR: 12 Reply 13, posted (5 years 9 months 2 weeks 2 days 6 hours ago) and read 3019 times:
10 members of the Calgary Flames pushing the mains and nose because the stairs truck died with the outriggers down and their chartered A320 wasn't going anywhere because nobody had the correct towbar.
Boston92 From United States of America, joined Aug 2006, 3390 posts, RR: 7 Reply 14, posted (5 years 9 months 2 weeks 2 days 3 hours ago) and read 2970 times:
On a recent flight from SFO to RNO, the Brasilia was heavy, and me and the rest of the back of the plane (heavyweights) had to lean back to help get the aircraft in the air and to our cruising altitude of 430 feet.
"Why does a slight tax increase cost you $200 and a substantial tax cut save you 30 cents?"
MD11Engineer From Germany, joined Oct 2003, 13334 posts, RR: 64 Reply 15, posted (5 years 9 months 2 weeks 1 day 22 hours ago) and read 2906 times:
Quoting SlamClick (Reply 12): Quoting DeltaGuy (Reply 9):
Moved a P-51 with a John Deere tractor and a chain
Moved an L-188 with a puny old half-ton Chevy pickup. Moving it was not a problem. Stopping it was. Wow!
Towing a MD-80 into a hangar using a 1 ton electric forklift because the tug was U/S.
Giving the nav lights on the wing tip of a 727 a "technical tap" (read: whacking them with a plastic traffic cone) to get them working again (the flight engineer's expression was priceless: "So Sir, where was the U/S light?")
HangarRat From United States of America, joined Jul 2005, 626 posts, RR: 0 Reply 16, posted (5 years 9 months 2 weeks 1 day 19 hours ago) and read 2850 times:
Pilotpip From United States of America, joined Sep 2003, 3082 posts, RR: 12 Reply 17, posted (5 years 9 months 2 weeks 1 day 17 hours ago) and read 2811 times:
Quoting HangarRat (Reply 16):
How'd they get on board after that? Step ladder?
We had a really flimsy airstairs that we kept around for detailing aircraft.
TristarSteve From Sweden, joined Nov 2005, 3690 posts, RR: 34 Reply 18, posted (5 years 9 months 2 weeks 1 day 15 hours ago) and read 2771 times:
Quoting 474218 (Reply 11): Good story Steve; However, the only part of the L-1011 slat system that has MEL relief is the indicating system. If the PDU was inoperative you can not dispatch a TriStar as it must have the slats operational.
Yes I wish I could remember. But it is a true story. I wish I knew why we did it!
Aogdesk From United States of America, joined Jun 2004, 933 posts, RR: 4 Reply 19, posted (5 years 9 months 2 weeks 1 day 14 hours ago) and read 2756 times:
Quoting MD11Engineer (Reply 15): Giving the nav lights on the wing tip of a 727 a "technical tap"
Wow Jan, I forgot all about the tap on the 727 nav's. Always used to make a quick trip out to the airplane before the flight crew went out to preflight. I don't know about your method, but I ALWAYS used a calibrated tap.
Rocked back an forth by pushing on the wings to help crack ice that has frozen the brakes when the brake deice is inop.
Watched a 1900 slide around on the ice outside a terminal for the same reason.
Lesson learned: "Don't taxi through snow piles if you can avoid it!"
Checko
Let me guess : This is the same multi-discs setup as the High Flotation Gears on the BE10?
At my old company, we had 2 BE10 out of 4 with that setup... and no brakes deice, they didn't think that this would be a useful option... well except when you operate north of the 49th parallel most of the time!
Correction: There was brake de-icers... one had 3 stripes, the other had 4, with a shared bottle of glycol IIRC
Oh I still remember a particular snowback in front of the hangar on a particulary cold January snow storm... but then my job was to stay warm inside
"For radar identification throw your jumpseat rider out the window."
Jetstar From United States of America, joined May 2003, 1523 posts, RR: 10 Reply 21, posted (5 years 9 months 2 weeks 1 day 8 hours ago) and read 2660 times:
Quoting Boeing767mech (Thread starter): My example 6 of us had to jump up and down to get the outer wing tank to drain down to the middle wing on a DC-10,
Did a similar thing on an Air Force Boeing C-97 during an engine change. The engine was mounted on a Quick Engine Change frame called a QEC. Everything came off the airplane as one unit and nothing stayed on the airframe.
During an engine change the QEC which was attached to the airframe with 4 bolts, we were only able to get 3 bolts in, the fourth was just a little off, instead of forcing or hammering the bolt in, I went out to the wingtip and started to jump up and down, the wing flexed enough so they were able to get the last QEC bolt in.
Mark5388916 From United States of America, joined Aug 2007, 377 posts, RR: 0 Reply 22, posted (5 years 9 months 2 weeks 1 day 8 hours ago) and read 2658 times:
I've used that same method of attaching some things at school... how interesting that it works for airplanes too.... Not a big surprise mind you
Mark
I Love ONT and SNA, the good So Cal Airports! URL Removed as required by mod
Boeing767mech From United States of America, joined Dec 2000, 992 posts, RR: 3 Reply 24, posted (5 years 9 months 2 weeks 19 hours ago) and read 2526 times:
Quoting Jetstar (Reply 21): During an engine change the QEC which was attached to the airframe with 4 bolts, we were only able to get 3 bolts in, the fourth was just a little off, instead of forcing or hammering the bolt in, I went out to the wingtip and started to jump up and down, the wing flexed enough so they were able to get the last QEC bolt in.
We usually have to use a little 5 pound force to get the bolts in during the reversor changes we do on the 757's. I about fell over dead the other day when we had the Crane set right and the T/R alined perfect, all we did was grease up the bolt and the thread protectors and it slid in with finger pressure. I have never had one do that before.
David
Never under-estimate the predictably of stupidty
25 MD11Engineer: On the 737 classic there is a bracket beneath the main gear actuator in the main wheel wells. To remove the actuator (during main gear replacements) y
26 Boeing767mech: We did a fitting on a 732 for Aloha when I was working at a repair station, we tried a 12X rivet gun and still could not get it to move. Turned out i
28 Buzz: Hi SlamCLick, Buzz here. I'd forgotten about jumping up and down in the aft cabin to get our DC-8 upper anticollison beacon to rotate. And there was o
29 MD11Engineer: I knew a South African engineer, who had to fix something on top of #1 engine pylon of a 727, but no ladder or staging. He used the L1 door hinges an
30 N710PS: Been there done that! Not with you though obviously. When we work together it is for some reason flawless except for you bitching at me about a misse
31 Cancidas: more like the many missed entries. SLACKER!
33 CanadianNorth: At Air North our front end loader, large forklift and aircraft tug are all the same vehicle. Basically it's an old front end loader with a forklift th
34 HAWK21M: How about control panel.Is it the same for each function or at different locatons on the vehicle. regds MEL
35 Gr8Circle: Wow! If I was a pax in a plane and looked out of the window and saw six guys jumping up and down on the wing, I would be seriously worried....
36 CanadianNorth: I've never actually been in it. But apparently it's much the same as a normal loader, only with a hook for the towbar. I don't know if there are any
37 HAWK21M: Try clicking a pic next time.As such multiple units normally have more than one control panel. regds MEL
38 Tdscanuck: I was on a 737 with some very minor damage to the nacelle that was found during walkaround. A mechanic applied a temporary speed tape repair, no bid
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