PUBLISHED: 30 Aug 2024 at 04: 00
The Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand ( CAAT ) is looking into an allegation that it issued an airworthiness certificate for a plane that was deemed unfit to fly.
A CAAT assistant director in charge of civil aircraft health affairs, Kajonpat Maklin, reported yesterday that concerns were being shared on social media about the release of an airworthiness document and the state of poor aircraft repairs. He claimed that the Commander 114, a tiny four-seat personal aircraft, had been inspected on December 6, 2023, and had received its airworthiness certificate on January 12, 2024.
A test into important documents like repair record, compliance with airworthiness directives, and conformity with company security is typically part of the process of issuing an airworthiness certificate. Every structure of the airplane is physically examined to make sure it is safe and operating. The owner of each plane and its specialists are responsible for maintaining the aircraft and making sure it is always safe to fly, he said.
However, the issue can be forwarded to the CAAT for further action if the plane owner believes that the behavior of a group of earth engineers who repaired the aeroplane violated aircraft rules.
However, for security reasons, the CAAT has already begun investigating the case yet without a formal complaint from the plane’s landlord, he said.
Warat Laithong, the YouTuber, and operator of the Commander 114 plane, posted on his Instagram on Wednesday a narrative about him purchasing the aeroplane two years ago. He had it checked out and maintained by a group of licensed aviation technicians. He claimed that the plane maintenance staff has been changed three times in the past two years, adding that the last time, on April 21, informed him that his aircraft was ready to fly after receiving a CAAT airworthiness document, was done.
He claimed that he encountered a number of issues during a test flight, but the most significant was a propeller overspeeding and an unsteady speed. A professional team there immediately informed him that the aircraft’s ball governor had been improperly installed after he and a friend took the plane to Bang Phra ( an airport in Chon Buri ).
In order to keep a constant engine speed under varying trip conditions, the ball government automatically adjusts the position of the aircraft’s propeller blade.
The revelation led to a re-check of the whole plane, which resulted in a lengthy, stunning problem list.