Old timer told me to skip a step on a 737 flap rig and I paid the price

Back when I was at a regional out of Detroit, a guy named Hank who had been doing this since the 70s told me I didn't need to torque the crank pulley bolts on a 737 flap actuator if I just gave them an extra quarter turn with a ratchet. I was green and figured he knew better than the manual. Three weeks later a flap failed to deploy on a landing and the MEL write up traced straight back to a loose bolt on that actuator. I spent six hours re-rigging the whole assembly and got written up by the DOM. Anyone else ever get bad advice from a senior mechanic that cost you time or worse?

3 comments

3 Comments

grace5082mo ago

Man that's brutal. Had a similar thing happen with an old timer who said "just feel" the torque on some DC-9 stuff. Ended up having to redo a whole flight control cable because it was way off.

simonh742mo agoMost Upvoted

The first time I heard "just feel it" I rolled my eyes. Not anymore though.

lilykelly2mo ago

Hank sounds like the kind of guy who also says "you don't need a torque wrench for spark plugs" though, right? I mean, six hours of re-rigging and a write-up is rough, but did the plane actually land okay or was it just a paperwork nightmare? Sometimes I wonder if we over-complicate this stuff.