May 8, 2005

A couple of days ago I received an personal email that had this to say:

Hey Connie
I'm just writing to voice my disappointment at not seeing any new airplane corrosion! What the hell's a guy to do to get a simple, weekly fix of some god damned rust? The bird shit on the fresh paint was nice but it's the corrosion that really works for me. I guess all I can do is sit back and hope you that you come to your senses and respect the fact that you've started something that needs to be maintained.
sincerely,
Paul C.
The International association of Airplane Corrosion Fetishists

Well, I am very sorry I have let association down.... I will try and make it up to you. - This is why today I have a special little bit of corrosion I have been saving for just such an occasion.....

- As you see above, not only do you have to have a good inspection eye to catch this blowout hiding behind a wire bundle, but it also helpful to know how it was caused....
Do you notice how there is a screw holding a wire clamp going into the structure? Well, that screw has caused Galvanic Corrosion, also known as "Dissimilar Metal Corrosion".... You see, The screw is steel and the structure is aluminum, and essentially they are not happy touching each other.... Well the steel doesn't mind, its the aluminum that get all irritated and has a breakdown. The aluminum would do better only being touched by its own kind. So when that is not possible, normal procedure is to stick an aluminum washer between them
........Safe screwing, if you will.

 

April 26, 2005

I am so sick of looking at Corrosion..... Here's something new:
*Torn Apart Airplane Interiors of The Week*!
This is what a Lavatory looks like with the shitter ripped out.... Lots of room to get your "mile high" rewards club points now!.
(Hmmmm, this picture reminds me of the time when I was an apprentice and I had to carry the sloshing toilet tank down the super steep ladder stairs, my face about 6 inches away from the seat.... Blue water splashing on my hands. Those certainly were the days.) 

April 20, 2005

The aircraft this juicy bit of corrosion came from had been "parked" for quite a long time and was recently brought in for a complete maintenance overhaul in order to go back into service. The high risk of corrosion will arise when older airplanes are taken out of service and sit outside in the elements - not unlike if you were to leave your patio furniture outside all winter, all summer, all winter etc..... eventually it would rust away. But in a jaw-dropping contrast, the replacement cost of a couple hundred dollars for a patio set, as compared to this one measly piece of structure's replacement cost that is valued in the thousands.
This, my friends, is why only rich bitches own airplanes. 

April 11 2005

Hmmmm.....This Corrosion really makes me think deeply, like a sleuth, as to how it was conceived ......It was located under the Flight Engineers seat track in the cockpit. One or more combinations of the following could possibly cause the type of metal breakdown we see here.
#1. The Flight Engineer spilled an acidy substance such as Coffee or Cola.
#2. The Flight Engineer had on slushy snowboots caked in road salt that melted in flight and puddled on the floor.
#3. On a extremely turbulent flight The Flight Engineer Vomited on the floor.
#4. On a close call landing The Flight Engineer Urinated and it dripped onto the floor...........
What is the moral of the story? - For the love of God! Don't pee, puke or spill on Aluminum Aircraft parts!  

March 30, 2005

Now this is Corrosion!.....This is the stuff of Structural Inspection Dreams....The kind of Corrosion that makes you yell out with glee - "BLOWOUT!" (notice how the aluminum has broken down {into powdery flakes} so much that it actually has exfoliated from its formed shape) - This mess was found around the Landing Gear area and was probably caused from excess moisture and dirt that is splashed all around the area by the spinning tires as the gear is retracted after takeoff. No worries though...The repair is already in progress with all new parts! 

March 20, 2005

Ok, so there was no Airplane Corrosion of interest this week, so I thought I would substitute it with a picture of the inside of the PSU (passenger service unit) which is in fact the panel above your head that houses the lights(far right), air vents (center, connected to the orange tube), and the compartment that holds the dangly yellow oxygen masks that come down if there is a "sudden loss of cabin pressure". I have witnessed the sight of all those masks falling down while tests of the system are being run, and its actually quite comical....The shitty part is that they all have to be rolled back up in a certain way so they fall down without getting tangled, and they have to be rolled tight enough to fit in that small compartment....Frustrating, but we do it with a smile, for it is after all, for the safety and well being of You, our beloved flying public!! 

March 12, 2005

OOOOh!...This is corrosion caused by urine and water collecting on an lavatory attach angle, but URINE luck - We fixed it!  

March 5, 2005

***Exciting New Weekly Feature!!!*** AIRPLANE CORROSION OF THE WEEK -This photo shows the damage spilled coffee can do to the seat track under a galley!!!!