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Commonwealth legislation
This Appendix prescribes step‑by‑step visual and cloth‑rub inspections and objective replacement thresholds for engine thrust‑control cable assemblies. It requires replacement if a single wire’s cross‑section is reduced >40%, or if a kink or corrosion is found; broken‑wire triggers are: 7x7 — ≥2 broken anywhere; 7x19 — ≥4 within 12 inches or ≥6 anywhere.
The rules bind aircraft operators and maintenance organisations to perform these manual checks, imposing labour, downtime and replacement costs while removing ambiguity about when a cable assembly must be replaced.
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Direct links to the current provisions in AD/B747/249 Appendix A - Engine Thrust Control Cables.
Detailed Visual Inspection to Detect Wear
(a) Perform a detailed visual inspection of the engine thrust control cables in the area of the plate to detect wear.
(b) Replace the cable assembly if any of the following criteria are met:
(i) One cable strand had worn wires where one wire cross section is decreased by more than 40 percent (see Figure 1)
(ii) A kink is found
(iii) Corrosion is found.
(a) To check for broken wires, rub a cloth along the length of the cable. The cloth catches on broken wires.
(b) Replace the cable assembly if any of the following criteria are met.
(i) Replace the 7x7 cable assembly if there are two or more broken wires anywhere in the total cable assembly.
(ii) Replace the 7x19 cable assembly if there are four or more broken wires in 12 continuous inches of cable or there are six or more broken wires anywhere in the total cable assembly.
Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation (legislation.gov.au), CC BY 4.0.
Detailed Visual Inspection to Detect Wear
(a) Perform a detailed visual inspection of the engine thrust control cables in the area of the plate to detect wear.
(b) Replace the cable assembly if any of the following criteria are met:
(i) One cable strand had worn wires where one wire cross section is decreased by more than 40 percent (see Figure 1)
(ii) A kink is found
(iii) Corrosion is found.
(a) To check for broken wires, rub a cloth along the length of the cable. The cloth catches on broken wires.
(b) Replace the cable assembly if any of the following criteria are met.
(i) Replace the 7x7 cable assembly if there are two or more broken wires anywhere in the total cable assembly.
(ii) Replace the 7x19 cable assembly if there are four or more broken wires in 12 continuous inches of cable or there are six or more broken wires anywhere in the total cable assembly.