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Mechanic reports he was directed by a maintenance supervisor to 'stop-drill' the ends of six fuselage skin cracks without removing the cabin interior. Cracks had been found on the B737-300 aircraft during a c-check. Aircraft was ferried for major crack repairs and stringers were later found nicked by the stop-drill procedures.
| Attributes | |
| ACN | 934742 |
| Time | |
| Date | 201102 |
| Local Time Of Day | 1201-1800 |
| Place | |
| Locale Reference | ZZZ.Airport |
| State Reference | US |
| Environment | |
| Light | Daylight |
| Aircraft 1 | |
| Make Model Name | B737-300 |
| Operating Under FAR Part | Part 121 |
| Flight Phase | Parked |
| Component | |
| Aircraft Component | Fuselage Skin |
| Person 1 | |
| Function | Technician |
| Qualification | Maintenance Airframe Maintenance Powerplant |
| Events | |
| Anomaly | Aircraft Equipment Problem Critical Deviation - Procedural Published Material / Policy Deviation - Procedural FAR Deviation - Procedural Maintenance |
Narrative:
I was informed that aircraft X [B737-300] had six cracks that were found on c-check the night before and they would need to be stop-drilled for a ferry flight. I was instructed to stop-drill the ends of the cracks with a 1/4 inch drill bit. When asked about gaining access to the inboard side of the fuselage to take proper steps as not to damage the stringers; the supervisor stated that there was not enough time for the [cabin interior] open-up and I was told to 'be careful.' I did as directed and the aircraft was ferried for repairs. When the skin was removed for repair of the cracks; some of the stringers had been nicked by me when stop-drilling the cracks before. I think stop-drilling should never be done without proper access to the back of the skin where structures could be damaged.
Original NASA ASRS Text
Title: Mechanic reports he was directed by a Maintenance Supervisor to 'stop-drill' the ends of six fuselage skin cracks without removing the cabin interior. Cracks had been found on the B737-300 aircraft during a C-check. Aircraft was ferried for major crack repairs and stringers were later found nicked by the stop-drill procedures.
Narrative: I was informed that Aircraft X [B737-300] had six cracks that were found on C-check the night before and they would need to be stop-drilled for a ferry flight. I was instructed to stop-drill the ends of the cracks with a 1/4 inch drill bit. When asked about gaining access to the inboard side of the fuselage to take proper steps as not to damage the stringers; the Supervisor stated that there was not enough time for the [cabin interior] open-up and I was told to 'be careful.' I did as directed and the aircraft was ferried for repairs. When the skin was removed for repair of the cracks; some of the stringers had been nicked by me when stop-drilling the cracks before. I think stop-drilling should never be done without proper access to the back of the skin where structures could be damaged.
Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 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.