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Cable Blocking

Having worked as an A & E in the rigging crew on a major airline back in the 50s and 60s, we were involved on major and minor overhauls on aircraft such as DC-4s, DC-6s, and DC-7s. On a major overhaul, nearly all the cables were replaced. Doing so required many cable blocks (see AM May 2006, page 22 and June 2006, page 68). We made our own (see diagram above) in many different lengths and sizes.

Before breaking a cable system down, install and tighten this wood clamp against a bulkhead or structure which will maintain tension when the system is broken down. A red removal tag was used which required an inspection stamp. These tags were numbered and logged on the overhaul records and accounted for before the aircraft could leave the hangar.

Carl Hill

A Job Worth Doing

I read with interest the article written by Steve Carbone, "My Way or the I.A." (see AM August 2006, page 40). In my career [as an I. A.], I have been privileged to work on just about every example of general aviation "bug smasher" built by Mooney, Piper, Beech and Cessna.

Through good fortune my company has a contract with a Part 121 carrier and has provided on-call and overnight maintenance on their RON fleet for over fifteen years. I have always been in awe of the size and complexity of the airline's ATR's and EMB's compared to your basic fixed-gear Cessna. But it never occurred to me to treat an air carrier aircraft any differently than a GA airplane. In my mind they all have to meet the same standards regardless of size.

In this day of shifting economic uncertainties, any A&P working for an airline could easily find himself laid-off and wishing he had some GA owner's 152 that needed the spark plugs cleaned. For many of us, passing the I.A. exam (especially on the first try) was a tremendous accomplishment and milestone in our careers. The average I.A. has to balance the maintenance costs of his GA customers against the profits his company needs. The airline provides all of the technical data and maintenance control for those airplanes that break down away from base. The I.A. has to make sure he has his own current technical data and he is maintenance control to his clients.

Mr. Carbone's mistake wasn't "forgetting the basics," it was overconfidence. I only hope that his quadrupled respect for the GA mechanic now puts the GA tech on the same professional level as a Part 121 tech. I also hope he understands in his new FSDO job what the I.A.'s world is really like. It isn't all about "war stories." It is about professionalism, and that a job worth doing, or a test worth taking, is worth doing well.

Ralph T. Kuchenbrod

Vice President Aircraft Maintenance

Flightstar Corporation

Savoy, IL