Surface cracks have been found on 2 Europas, each side of the fuselage,
spreading a short distance upwards from a point directly above the main
spar. There are corresponding cracks on the wing fillet fairings. There is
no immediate cause for alarm, but it would be helpful to know whether there
are other examples in the fleet. This would show if further investigation is
needed, so that proper advice could be given as to any necessary
preventative or remedial action.
If you have experienced such cracks, please would you advise John Tempest of
PFA Engineering <john_tempest@pfa.org>
of the following:
1. Registration and approx hours flown.
2. Length of fuselage cracks, measured from top of spar slots.
3. Depth of cracks, if deeper than surface paint/filler.
4. Whether there are corresponding cracks in the wing fillet
fairings.
I emphasise that this is solely for us to understand whether there is a
general symptom, which may be purely the result of the fuselage flexing in
service, without any structural integrity implications. No action other than
reporting is being called for, and I would like to remind anyone building a
Europa that they should not rush into any home-grown modification such as
local reinforcement of the structure: previous experience suggests that, if
any change at all is needed, it will be as a result of a careful structural
analysis to avoid causing problems elsewhere.
Fly safely
Mike
Europa Club Safety Officer
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