Staying cool? The heat wave we are experiencing will be breaking shortly. I just cannot wait.
As you may or may not know, the "tach" column in the airplane flight logs help us to keep track of maintenance items and airworthiness. Cessnas 630, 68U, 20U, 04H, 1ES and 25R have pretty easy-to-read tachometers that make this easy. 5 seconds of your time can save maintenance a few minutes in tracking down the latest tach data.
However... we have also noticed that some pilots are skipping this optional step in 17J and 85Y. Clearly, it is because these tachs are not obvious.
So, here is where you can find tach data on these planes:
For Cessna 17J and the G-1000:
You will find a line right above the Electrical readout which says something like:
ENG 2205.8 HRS
That is the tach time as recorded by the G-1000.
For 85Y, you have two tachometers.
Both are digital.
The LEFT tach is the one which we use to track airframe maintenance.
We are happy to have BOTH entered in the log if you can spare the time. We understand that this is not always the case.
Pressing the "Hours - L" button (the one on the left) will recall the tach time.
...piece of cake, right? :)
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In other news,
We have pulled 04H down indefinitely to investigate the effects of a hard landing this morning. Nobody was injured, but we are studying the plane to gauge the effects and determine airworthiness status. We anticipate repairs to take some time.
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One of the challenging responsibilities the FAA imposes on pilots is the need to determine airworthiness of an aircraft, regardless of whether or not you own it or have access to its maintenance records.
Many of you know that our logs are available for the asking, however, because complete maintenance records can account for up to 20% of an aircraft's value, we keep them under close watch. As such, your ability to "quickly check on things" is compromised. We have frowned on this situation for some time.
As I had hinted at previously, we are going to add "AV1ATE" printouts to our dispatch books, which highlight the major inspections you as a pilot are responsible for.
Here is the format of the printout for your review:
We invite any comments you may have about these sheets -- we plan to improve them as we go.
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Cooler temps tomorrow, and frozen temps on thursday! Someone needs to make up their mind.
At least... it's... Blue Skies!
See ya,
- Mike
