Narrative:

When considering damage (dents) within the reduced vertical separation minimum (rvsm) area of a boeing aircraft the following references are used; structural repair manual (srm) 53-00-01-1A-1 allowable damage; srm 51-10-03 rvsm skin waviness inspection and srm 51-10-01 aerodynamic smoothness requirements. A review of the requirements for rvsm flight based on srm 51-10 requires a repair to be accomplished whenever the damage (dent) is outside srm 53-00-01 allowable limits (reference paragraph-3; B; 'note'). Srm 53-00-01 detail III requires a dent to be 10' inches or more from a cutout and 3' inches or more from a skin splice; as measured from the nearest fastener hole centerline to the edge of the dent periphery. If you layout the allowable areas within the rvsm that meet this requirement without requiring a repair; it's a very small area at the front end of the rvsm box. This whole process of rvsm determination for flight is very complicated and easy for anyone to make a mistake due to the process of qualifying a dent. The requirements for other types of damage (nicks; gouges; corrosion; scratches and scribe lines) do not have the 10' inch rule described in srm 53-00-01. This is just an informational statement for the purpose of making aware the potential for error. No known event has occurred; but a review of aircraft rvsm deferrals should be accomplished. [Recommend] training; training; training. The rvsm area is very misunderstood due to the number of references required to determine the condition.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: A Line Aircraft Maintenance Technician (AMT) describes the difficulty involved when considering damage (dents) that lie within the Reduced Vertical Separation Minimum (RVSM) areas of an aircraft's fuselage; prior to continued flight. AMT notes that references involving Structural Repair Manuals (SRM) 51-10-01 and SRM 53-00-01 can be misunderstood; more training is necessary.

Narrative: When considering damage (dents) within the Reduced Vertical Separation Minimum (RVSM) area of a Boeing aircraft the following references are used; Structural Repair Manual (SRM) 53-00-01-1A-1 Allowable Damage; SRM 51-10-03 RVSM Skin Waviness Inspection and SRM 51-10-01 Aerodynamic Smoothness Requirements. A review of the requirements for RVSM flight based on SRM 51-10 requires a repair to be accomplished whenever the damage (dent) is outside SRM 53-00-01 Allowable Limits (reference Paragraph-3; B; 'NOTE'). SRM 53-00-01 Detail III requires a dent to be 10' inches or more from a cutout and 3' inches or more from a skin splice; as measured from the nearest fastener hole centerline to the edge of the dent periphery. If you layout the allowable areas within the RVSM that meet this requirement without requiring a repair; it's a very small area at the front end of the RVSM box. This whole process of RVSM determination for flight is very complicated and easy for anyone to make a mistake due to the process of qualifying a dent. The requirements for other types of damage (NICKS; GOUGES; CORROSION; SCRATCHES and SCRIBE LINES) do not have the 10' inch rule described in SRM 53-00-01. This is just an informational statement for the purpose of making aware the potential for error. No known event has occurred; but a review of aircraft RVSM deferrals should be accomplished. [Recommend] Training; Training; Training. The RVSM area is very misunderstood due to the number of references required to determine the condition.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of July 2013 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.