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Perhaps the cable strands are breaking because of the extra drag caused by the push rods rubbing on the inspection panel screws? Or, is there any extra stress on the cables for lowering the flaps at 140mph vs 100mph?
Personally, I think it is good to visually inspect. But wear items like this should be time/cycle limited. Aviation is only 100 years old. This is the first time in its history that 40-50 year old metal airplanes are flying with no manditory parts replacement times -- i.e., no contiued airworthiness instructions as newer airplanes have. I don't think Mr. Cessna ever envisioned that his airplanes would fly for 30, 40, 50, 60 + years, but they are. I asked Cessna, thru an email, what was the designed service hours/life of a 172; they never answered back. My guess is because they never considered it during its design.
This forum, and others like it, is a God's send. We are our own tech support, and are sitting at an historic aviation crossroad. That crossroad is: "How long can you fly an airplane before it just falls out of the sky?"
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07-04-07, 03:33 AM
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