Thursday, October 06, 2005

Aircraft Snag

Every aircraft logbook page has a space to report snags (problems), and each snag has to be numbered to correspond to maintenance rectifications and deferrals. Sometimes there are little jokes hidden within.

At the end of a particularly hot week, an airplane might turn up at the maintenance hangar, logbook annotated with:

Air conditioning u/s

If the head of maintenance is in the right mood, some poor apprentice may be sent to diagnose the unserviceable air conditioner. The game is to see how long it takes him to figure out that the aircraft never had air conditioning installed.

Cosmetic problems in the cockpit don't get rectified quickly. It's amusing to see how many executive transports sport brand new leather interiors in the passenger cabin, while the pilot seats are ratty cloth partially recovered in ratty sheepskin. Its not worth writing up a snag for a coffee stain. Unless the right opportunity presents itself.

1. Left engine stopped producing power immediately after take-off.
2. Aircraft landed over max certified landing weight.
3. Brown stains on pilot seat.

It's all about context.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Gallows humour, eh? I expect when you go, you'd want to go like my father, peacefully in his sleep.
Not like his passengers, kicking and screaming.

Anonymous said...

After the sad news from Winnipeg today (a female pilot, based in Edmonton, lost in a Cessna Caravan crash in Winnipeg), we're all waiting for an "it wasn't me" posting. We'll also hope that it wasn't a friend or close acquaintance.