Avro 146-RJ100, G-CFAC, 18 March 2005
Avro 146-RJ100, G-CFAC plus others
Summary:
During the winter of 2004/2005, UK-based airline operators experienced numerous incidents of restricted elevator and aileron controls on their Avro 146-RJ100 fleets. One operator also reported occurrences of restricted elevator controls on its Embraer 145 and Bombardier DHC-8 aircraft. These aircraft types are similar in having non-powered flight controls. Other European operators of Avro 146/RJ-series aircraft also reported flight control restriction events during the same period. Many of these events were found to be associated with residues of ‘thickened’ de-icing fluids, that had accumulated in the aerodynamically ‘quiet’ areas of the elevator and aileron controls. These residues rehydrate on exposure to precipitation and can freeze at altitude, with the potential for restricting control movement. In most of these incidents, the control forces returned to normal after the aircraft had descended into warmer conditions. Despite recent industry efforts at addressing the problems posed by such residues, an effective solution remains to be found. This bulletin reiterates the safety recommendations issued in a recent AAIB bulletin, which stated that the build-up of such residues must be avoided through a tightly controlled regime of inspection and cleaning, and that new types of thickened fluids must be developed, whose residues do not cause flight control restrictions on aircraft with non-powered flight controls.
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