Since our last update, further progress has been made on the Major maintenance programme on Lancaster PA474 by the skilled engineers at the Aircraft Restoration Company (ARCo) at Duxford.
The majority of the Structurally Significant Item (SSI) inspections have been completed, the elastomeric hose survey has commenced, and zonal surveys are now taking place. The Major programme also includes significant amounts of non-destructive testing (NDT); that is now underway and will last for approximately six weeks.
All six fuel tanks have been removed from the wings of the Lancaster, and the tank outer coverings stripped off. BAES engineers have visited ARCo to check the configuration of PA474’s fuel tanks against the drawings, an essential precursor to starting the manufacture of six new fuel tanks for the aircraft. Meanwhile, the radiators and coolant tanks have been removed and sent to a specialist contractor for overhaul.
The main undercarriage and the tail leg have been removed from the aircraft and stripped for maintenance. PA474’s tail leg had been suffering from leaks and loss of oleo pressure and was also prone to shimmying. The original manufacturer of undercarriage components for Lancasters was Dowty Aviation, which is now part of the Safran Group, the world’s largest manufacturer of aircraft landing gear. Engineers from the company visited Duxford on 12th January to inspect the undercarriage and they identified specific issue with the tail leg: a configuration issue, seal damage and corrosion on the sliding tube. ARCo and the BBMF Project Team (PT) are now working on resolving the issues with new components.
One of the most significant and obvious tasks completed, at least to the casual observer, is the split of the rear fuselage at the transport joint just aft of the mid-upper turret mounting. Splitting the rear fuselage is the easiest way to replace the control rods for the elevators and rudders, which pass through the fuselage frames. Some equipment was borrowed from East Kirkby to assist with this task, but the fabrication of a new large trestle for the rear fuselage was also needed before the split could be done. The split was completed on 16th January without issues, and the team were pleased to find that there was no damage or corrosion at the frame joints.
The first outload of items for ‘bay’ maintenance has now taken place, in this case electrical, avionic and instrument items sent to SkySmart MRO Ltd, a company which specialises in avionic and mechanical component repair, maintenance and inventory support.
We will bring further updates as the Lancaster’s Major maintenance progresses.
