Threat to engine failure sparks safety alert

Threat to engine failure sparks safety alert

By AOPA ePublishing staff

Precision Airmotive has issued a safety alert and service bulletin for its fuel-injection systems found on many light aircraft—including all newer model piston single-engine Cessnas and some Pipers—because of a possible loose brass regulator plug that could cause significant or complete engine power loss.

Loose plugs were found on Lycoming IO-540-K engines in Piper Saratoga/6X aircraft, and the company has said that it is concerned about the similarity of these events and a change it made in August 2006 to the gasket used under the plug. However, Precision Airmotive has not yet determined that to be the cause.

The company urges pilots not to fly aircraft equipped with an RSA-5 or RSA-10 servo until the unit has been inspected. These servos are used on Lycoming fuel-injected engines, including those on all of Cessna’s newer single-engine piston aircraft and some Piper aircraft such as the Seneca using the TCM TSIO-360-RB engine.

The parts may have been installed on new or overhauled fuel-injected engines or on any engine in which fuel injection work included gasket replacement. See the service bulletin for inspection instructions. An FAA airworthiness directive and Cessna service bulletin is likely to follow.

March 6, 2008