Aircraft No. 3 N921AU, T-21; P3-A; Serial Number 151385 Aircraft Data: Manufacture Date: 1964 Entered airtanker operations: 5/21/1992 FAA Registration Card - See Attachment 3-1. Issued to: Aero Union Corporation Date of Issue: March 12, 1997 Expiration Date: April 30, 2014 FAA Registration Marks: N921AU Aircraft Serial Number: 151385 FAA Airworthiness Certificate: Special Airworthiness Certificate ; RESTRICTED Category See Attachment 3-2. Purpose: Forestry and Wildlife Conservation FAA No.: N921AU Serial No.: 151385 Builder: Aero Union Corporation Model: P-3A Operating Limitations Dated: 4/21/11 Date of Issue: 4/21/11 Expiry Date: Unlimited (Expiry is the exact FAA abbreviation on the certificate) Refers to: Type Certificate A32NM USFS Aircraft Approval Card- See Attachment 3-3. Issued to: Aero Union Corporation Date of Issue: 4/13/11 Expiration date: 12/2011 FAA Registration Marks: N921AU Aircraft Serial Number: 151385 Approval for: Airtanker Contract No.: AG-024B-C-08-9277, Item 5 Note- There was an open USFS Card Inspection Discrepancy that stated the: ALS Insp Requirements have numerous items incomplete. The Aero Union sign off on this item is The aircraft has been removed from TCDS T00006LA and installed on TCDS A32AW which has no ALS listed. All airworthy items have been inspected by alternate means including life limited PSE s. See Attachment 3-4.
Last Flight- Operations Logbook Page No.: 21145 Date: 7/29/2011 Aircraft TT: 17,454.65 hours Records Review: Logbooks- Airframe 2/1992 Military aircraft flight times brought forward from military records. TT 13,234.7; Time since Last Depot Level Overhaul 1097.7. 5/1992, TT 13,234.7, First civil annual inspection. 5/21/1992 Restricted Airworthiness Certificate issued for Forestry & Wildlife Conservation. 4/21/1997, TT 13,452.7 RADS II retardant tank installed. 6/12/1999 Nose Landing Gear retracted on ground, retardant tank R & R and repaired. 5/15/2005, TT 15,377.3, Annual inspection plus Phased Depot Maintenance General and Phase II performed. 4/14/2008, TT 16,558.14, Altimeter, static system and transponder checks. 6/18/2009, TT 16,842.5, Annual inspection plus Phased Depot Maintenance General and Phase III performed and AFB 356, Rev. B accomplished. Next PDM due: General and Phase I, Dec. 2013. 2/10/2010, TT 17,035.74, Altimeter, static system and transponder checks. 2/19/2010, Performed audit of Navy and Aero Union records. Ref. total landings calculator worksheet dated 2/17/2010. As of 12/1/2009, correct TT 17,035.74 and total landings: 14,146. 2/23/2010, TT 17,035.8, 14,104 cycles, annual inspection. 4/5/2011, TT 17,215.1, total cycles 14,356, aircraft inspected in accordance with an approved inspection program, reference FAR 91.409(f)(4) and was found to be in an airworthy condition, ref. Aero Union Work Order No. 4015. All of the inspection details, repairs and maintenance are included on/in Work Order No. 4015; this includes the following inspection and maintenance segments: 10/12/2010 Phase I- Induction 10/12/2010 Phase II- Inspection 10/14/2010 Phase III- ALS Inspection 11/11/2010 Phase IV- Routine Maintenance 11/11/2010 Phase V- Time/Cycle Maintenance 11/11/2010 Phase VI- Non-routine Maintenance 11/11/2010 Phase VII- Final checks and Tests 11/22/2011 Phase VIII- Deferred Items
Note- three items were deferred and all three items were cleared. See Attachment 3-5. (Last annual inspection) <last airframe logbook entry> Engine Logbooks- See Attachment 3-6 for engine, prop and component serial numbers, hours, cycles. Engine No. 1 Serial Number AE102879, 4/5/2011, engine TT 14,504.4, TSO 10,380.7, sent to vendor for repair of turbine assemble, installed on T-21, #1 position at ACTT 17,215.1. Engine annual inspection completed. Engine No. 2 Serial Number AE105207, 6/10/2009, engine TT 10,631.8, TSO 2517.0, compressor repaired by Segers Aero Corporation and installed on T-21, No. 2 position at ACTT 16,842.5, annual inspection completed. 4/5/2011, ACTT 17,215.1, engine TT 11,004.4, TSO2889.6, engine annual inspection completed. Engine No. 3 Serial Number AE105266, engine purchase from GSA sales, NARF Alameda. Engine TT 10,898.0, TSO 7560.0. 4/5/2011, ACTT 17,215.1, engine TT 14,078.1 TSO 10,740.1, engine annual inspection completed. Engine No. 4 Serial Number AE103625, engine purchase from GSA sales, NARF Alameda. Engine TT 10,540.0, TSO 2979.0. 4/5/2011, ACTT 17,215.1, engine TT 12,660.2 TSO 5,099.2, engine installed on T-21, #1 position and engine annual inspection completed. Selected FAA Form 337, Major Repair and/or Alteration- 2008 Note- no logbook entry for Operational Loads Monitoring System. 5/21/1992, 16 FAA Form 337 s filed for typical wing corrosion repairs at airtanker build-up. Airworthiness Limitations Section- A review from the winter 2010/2011 ALS printout (last annual inspection) indicated that a total of 39 inspection items are now due and several inspection items were not completed during the last winter annual inspection principally due to lack of specialized non-destructive test (NDT) equipment. See Attachment 3-7. Note- The FAA Type Certificate Data Sheet for this
aircraft requires an active FAA Approved damage tolerance and fatigue evaluation (and monitoring) program in accordance with FAR 25.571. The Type Certificate Data Sheet makes this specification in Note 4 of the Document. Records Examination and Results- I examined the aircraft and engine logbooks, file folders pertaining to: aircraft registration and airworthiness certificates, FAA Form 337 s, Major Alteration and Major Repair, ALS, USFS Certification and Work Orders. The aircraft maintenance records are detailed, concise and fully describe the inspections and maintenance performed. Aero Union operated a FAA Part 145 Repair Station maintenance facility under FAA Repair Station No. AUCR270C. Examination of the records indicated that appropriate and complete logbook entries and Work Order data and supporting outside part suppliers and material processing facilities certification documents complied with FAA and aerospace industry accepted practices and standards. The winter 2010/2011 annual inspections were extensive and the Work Order inspection cards, supporting parts and special inspection cards indicated that the inspections and maintenance were thorough and complete, excepting for some of the ALS inspections requiring specialized test equipment. The logbook revealed entries pertaining to logbook audits to insure correct aircraft total times and cycles. The P-3A aircraft was inspected and maintained in accordance with Aero Union s FAA Approved Maintenance and Inspection Program, dated October 28, 2008. The Aero Union P-3A Maintenance and Inspection Program provides for repetitive annual inspections, calendar inspections, condition inspections, Airworthiness Limitations Inspections (per FAR Part 25.571, damage tolerance and Note 4 of the Type Certificate Data sheet), and Phased Depot Level Inspections. The Phased Depot Level Inspections include a general inspection and one of three Phase inspections every 54 months. T-21 had two major Depot Level inspections in 2005 and 2009. The next Depot Level Inspection is due in 2013. US Navy Airframe Bulletin No. 356, Revision B. This bulletin is a major disassembly of the wing and includes the replacement of critical spar caps and critical highly stressed parts and fittings. T-21 had AFB 356 incorporated in 2009. The Airworthiness Limitations Section Inspections are mandatory and part of the airworthiness requirements in the Type Certificate Data Sheet. Further, the FAA Type Certificate Data Sheet ALS Inspections require that several primary structural parts be inspected using both visual
methods and more sophisticated electronic test equipment methods. Some parts have a finite service life and must be replaced at various aircraft total times and/or total cycles. There were several ALS inspection items that were not complied with. This is not an intentional maintenance omission; rather, this appears to have been a management decision to not procure/rent the necessary sophisticated electronic NDI equipment to perform the inspections. These inspections will need to be accomplished prior to returning the aircraft to service. The 2011 US Forest Service Card Inspection had a corrective action sign off by Aero Union for T- 21, discrepancy No. 2 that stated the aircraft was being changed from Type Certificate T00006LA to Type Certificate A32NM and therefor the ALS due items no longer apply. The FAA re-issued Type Certificate A32NM on April 26, 2011, to include the identical ALS FAA Part 25.571 Damage Tolerance and fatigue inspection requirements in a revised Note 4. Accordingly, the ALS applies to all Aero Union P-3 aircraft. See Attachment 3-4.