THE DISCOVERY of faulty counterfeit connecting-rod bolts on some Textron Lycoming piston engines is expected to result in a bill of more than $10 million for fixed-wing aircraft and helicopter owners. A US Federal Aviation Administration emergency airworthiness directive (AD) has grounded the aircraft for inspection.
The FAA estimates that 300 engines of the 6,000 aircraft and helicopters involved will have to be torn down to replace bogus parts, at a total cost of $1.5 million. Inspection costs will add a further $9 million.
The AD, issued on 17 March, ordered that aircraft be grounded until they are inspected for counterfeit and faulty bolts.
Aircraft powered by 360-, 540 -and 720-series engines made at Textron Lycoming's Williamsport, Pennsylvania, plant are affected. The engines are used on small aircraft made by Raytheon, Piper, Cessna, Aero Commander, Mooney, Bellanca, Enstrom, Schweizer and Robinson, among others.
The bogus connecting-rod bolts apparently came from Germany and were imported by Superior Air Parts. The importer told the FAA that a bolt on a Cessna 177RG fractured in 1994, but the pilot landed safely. Another faulty bolt was discovered during maintenance on a Piper aircraft this year.
The FAA says that the bolts were shipped from Superior Air Parts between February and December of 1994 and used as replacement parts for Textron Lycoming, Superior Air Parts and Aircraft Technologies products. The faulty bolts have no markings to identify them as approved parts. Bogus bolts in Lycoming boxes were apparently among those shipped to independent repairers.
Work on one third of the 8,500 engines rebuilt since the parts were imported, had been undertaken by Textron Lycoming, leaving about 6,000 engines rebuilt at repair stations, which may have received the bogus part. The FAA US Customs Service and German authorities are investigating the matter.
Source: Flight International
