Commonwealth legislation

AD/BELL 206/78 - Freewheeling Outer Race Shaft - Inspection

RepealedCTH

This Act has been repealed and is no longer in force. It is retained for historical reference.

Jurisdiction

Commonwealth

Collection

legislative instrument

Plain English Summary

2/10 complexity

This Airworthiness Directive (a legally binding safety order) mandates urgent inspections of a critical helicopter component — the freewheeling outer race shaft — on Bell 206 and Agusta Bell 206 series aircraft.

The guts of it: A manufacturing cock-up means some shafts developed microscopic cracks (called intergranular cracking) where they connect to the engine. If these cracks spread, the shaft could fail, potentially leaving you without engine power mid-flight.

Who's caught by this: Anyone operating Bell 206 helicopters, including the Agusta-licensed versions.

What you must do: Follow the inspection procedures detailed in one of three technical bulletins (Bell Service Bulletin 206-78-2, Bell Service Bulletin 206L-78-4, or Agusta Service Bulletin BT206-19). These specify exactly how to check for the cracks and how often.

The bottom line: This prevents your helicopter from dropping out of the sky due to a dodgy part. Inspect the shaft as directed or ground the aircraft.

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AD/BELL 206/78 - Freewheeling Outer Race Shaft - Inspection

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COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA (Civil Aviation Regulations 1998), PART 39 - 105 CIVIL AVIATION SAFETY AUTHORITY

SCHEDULE OF AIRWORTHINESS DIRECTIVES

Bell Helicopter Textron Canada (BHTC) 206 and Agusta Bell 206 Series Helicopters

AD/BELL 206/78 Freewheeling Outer Race Shaft - Inspection 2/79

Applicability: All models as detailed in Requirement Documents. Document: 1. Bell Alert SB No. 206-78-2; or

2. Bell Alert SB No. 206L-78-4; or

3. Agusta SB No. BT206-19. Compliance: As detailed in the requirement documents.

Background: Due to an incorrect manufacturing process, a number of freewheeling outer race shafts have exhibited intergranular cracking in the radii area forward of the engine drive splines. AD/Agusta 206/63 equivalent.

Source text

Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation (legislation.gov.au), CC BY 4.0.