Service difficulty report · Fork · Hiller UH12D

Difficulty date
September 8, 2015
Submitted
September 11, 2015
Operation
General aviation
Aircraft
N94AP
Make and model
Hiller UH12D
Aircraft serial
1211
Aircraft time
12,236 hours
Engine
Allsn 250C20B
Engine time
10,489 hours
Part
Fork
Part number
521103
Part serial
11513P
Condition
Cracked
Location
Main Rotor Head
Part time
751 hours
Component
Head · Hiller
Component part number
5143919
Stage of operation
AG
How discovered
O
Nature of condition
E
Precautionary procedure
A

As reported to the FAA. Reports are unverified, and codes are left as the FAA publishes them.

What was found

THE ACFT WAS PERFORMING AERIAL APPLICATION UNDER RESTRICTED CATEGORY. PRIOR TO 9/8/2015, THE PILOT REPORTED THE ACFT FLEW SMOOTH. PILOT REPORTED THAT THE LAST FLIGHT ON 9/7/2015 THE ACFT DEVELOPED A SLIGHT LATERAL VIBRATION. THE NEXT MORNING ON 9/8/2015, HE WENT BACK TO WORK, BUT AFTER 4 HOURS THE LATERAL VIBRATION HAD BECOME SEVERE AND MADE THE DECISION TO LAND AND INVESTIGATE. THE PILOT, AFTER CONTACTING MAINTENANCE, PERFORMED A VISUAL CHECK OF THE MAIN ROTOR HEAD ASSEMBLY. HE DISCOVERED A CRACK ON THE L/E OF THE MAIN ROTOR FORK IN THE AREA OF THE OTBD TENSION/TORSION PIN. A VISUAL INSPECTION WAS PERFORMED AND DETERMINED THE CRACK MUST HAVE PROPAGATED FROM MFG TOOLING MARKS LOCATED ON THE INTERIOR SURFACE ADJACENT TO THE TT PIN BORE. THIS PN IS AFFECTED BY AD 86-17-02 WHICH WAS LAST PERFORMED, USING DYE CHECK, 29 HOURS AGO DURING A 100 HOUR INSPECTION, AT WHICH TIME NO DEFECTS WERE NOTED. 15 NEW PARTS FROM SAME PO IN STOCK WERE INSPECTED AND FOUND THE INTERIOR BORES ROUGH AND UNDERSIZED. ESTIMATED INTERIOR SURFACE FINISH TO BE => 500 REVIEWING THE OEM BLUEPRINT, ALL SURFACES ARE SUPPOSED TO BE 32. SUSPECT PARTS WERE NOT FINISHED TO BLUEPRINT. THE PART IS A FAA-PMA PART MADE BY MFG. ANOTHER FORK SN 11527P, TTSN 781 WAS FOUND TO HAVE A 1" LONG CRACK IN THE SAME PLACE ON AN ACFT UNDERGOING MAINTENANCE.

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