Aircraft
Certification Service Washington, DC U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Aviation Administration
CE-08-34
July 15, 2008
This is information only. Recommendations
aren’t mandatory.
Introduction
This Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin informs Swift Model
GC-1A and GC-1B airplane owners, operators, and maintenance technicians
of the possibility of brake pedal link rod failure. The failure of this
link rod can result in loss of brake and rudder action.
Background
A failure of a brake link rod, part number 1830, in a Swift airplane
has been reported to the FAA. This link rod connects the brake pedal to
the bell crank which actuates the master brake cylinder. The failure of
this link rod allows the pedal to travel forward to the cabin floor and
jam against a channel which results in the loss of both brake actuation
and rudder pedal travel. Upon further examination of the failed link
rod by the Swift Museum Foundation, they found the steel sleeve bushing
on the link rod had worn completely through which in turn allowed the
aluminum link rod to wear through and fail.
The Swift Museum Foundation issued Customer Service Maintenance
Bulletin #39 on June 7, 2008, regarding the link rod failure. The
service bulletin requires a check for looseness in the 1830 brake pedal
link rods and if looseness is found then the link rods are removed to
inspect for any wear in the steel bushings or the link rods. If these
parts are worn, the service bulletin requires replacement of the link
rods, the steel bushings, and associated hardware. The Swift Museum
Foundation has assembled these replacement parts into the “1830 Brake
Repair Kit”. The kit cost is $51.00 and will take approximately 1
work-hour to install.
At this time, this airworthiness concern is not considered an unsafe
condition that would warrant an airworthiness directive (AD) action
under Title 14 of the Code of Federal Aviation Regulations (14 CFR part
39).
Recommendations
The FAA is recommending all owners, operators, and maintenance
technicians of Swift GC-1A and GC-1B airplanes perform the actions
described in Swift Customer Service Maintenance Bulletin #39 dated June
7, 2008.
For Further Information Contact
Cindy Lorenzen, Aerospace Engineer, 1895 Phoenix Parkway, Suite 450,
Atlanta, Georgia, 30349; telephone: 770-703-6078; fax: 770-703-6055; or
e-mail: cindy.lorenzen@faa.gov.
For Related Service Information Contact
A copy of Customer Service Maintenance Bulletin #39 and the 1830 Brake
Repair Kit are available from the Swift Museum Foundation, PO Box 644,
Athens, Tennessee, 37371-0644; telephone 423-744-9696; fax
423-745-9869; or e-mail: swiftlypam@aol.com.