Nothing like flying a Twin Commander 1000 Winner Aviation Lead Inspector Don Price has seen a lot in his nearly 50 years as an aviation maintenance technician. So when he says that it’s a good idea to comply with service bulletins, it seems wise to listen.
In his duties for Winner, Price sees many airplanes come through the shop, mostly from private operators who aren’t required by regulation to comply with service bulletins. There are FARs for annual and recurring inspections that must be followed, and owners and operators must comply with airworthiness directives. But service bulletins are a factory publication, often released in concert with FAA guidance, that encourage owners to alter, repair, or inspect a certain component of the aircraft. Price said that from what he’s learned and what he sees on a daily basis, complying with service bulletins makes sense. “If I put my butt in the seat I think I’d be doing them,” he said.
Price emphasized a number of significant SBs that he thinks are particularly critical, including number 218. This document calls for an inspection of the vertical stabilizer and a support to be added to guard against structural failure.
Because many Twin Commanders have been in service for decades it’s important to make sure that technicians are inspecting for fatigue and applying service bulletins that address any potential problems. That’s why Price stays current on factory documents, and reaches out to other technicians and engineering firms for current information. By doing so he hears of potential issues from high-time operators, such as Twin Commanders used in forestry applications, before they became widely known. He then takes that information and applies it to his inspections, usually on airframes with less time.
After spending one nine-year stint at Winner, then going to US Air and retiring from the airlines, Price has spent an additional 13 years at the Twin Commander Service Center. He picked up metal working skills at US Air, and applies them to Winner’s customer airplanes now. “It’s a great airplane,” he said. “I wish they were still making it.”
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