All,
so many of you have asked me to show my door security pip-pins that here
they are.
Pip-pin connects the guard and the lever together.
Pip-pin has a safety lanyard.
Placards:
1) "do not open during flight" (both sides)
2) "open" with an arrow (both sides)
3) "Warning! Only the pilot is allowed to open - close - lock the door"
(passenger side only!).
Last notice is because of security and partly because I do not like an
idea to repair the internal parts of the door after somebody has locked
it using unnecessary extra force.
They work fine and I feel good with them. I could not imagine
possibility to fly without them.
Nice to be with you - Mr. Dave Conrad - in a same club flying with
"locked" eh retarded doors...
Raimo OH-XRT
(flying with pip-pinned doors)
----- Original Message -----
From: David Conrad
To: europa-list@matronics.com
Sent: Wednesday, November 18, 2009 2:56 PM
Subject: Re: Europa-List: Door locked inflight by pip-pins.
Gentlemen,
I don't want to add to controversy, but...
I have independently come to the conclusion of using pip pins...
actually the little red spring loaded ones from the Andair fuel
selectors.
Loosing a door in flight is Bad - Bad - Bad!
External Placcards describing how to open the door, and glider
window vents allow access to the internal locking mechanism when on the
ground. Gliders don't have external door handles... there is no reason
our Europas need external door handles either.
Dave Conrad
A078, Monowheel
914, short and long wings
Building
--- On Wed, 11/18/09, Raimo Toivio <raimo.toivio@rwm.fi> wrote:
From: Raimo Toivio <raimo.toivio@rwm.fi>
Subject: Europa-List: Door locked inflight by pip-pins.
To: europa-list@matronics.com
Date: Wednesday, November 18, 2009, 5:20 AM
"Are you serious ? In an accident, how would a potential
rescuer get the doors open ?"
Karl,
I understand your point but I have thought it very carefully
and I am very serious and happy with my always locked doors when
inflight (I have pip-pins both side)!
The risks of the unlocked doors when inflight are heavier than
the risks of the pip-pin locked doors when crash landed.
Consider this:
1) An unthinking passenger can easily lift the lever and ask
"what is this?". Shit happens, really.
The pip pin prevents accidents like this - a pilot has more
time to react and say no no no.
The function of the pip-pin is in this case to be a retarder!
2) Pilots=B4s or co-pilot=B4s sleeve could easily lift the
lever by accident - pip pin prevents this.
The guard alone is good but not 100% guaranteed. The function
of the pip-pin is in this case to be a safety catch.
3) Passenger side=B4s pip-pin is a good, simple and effective
door lock when grounded.
The function of the pip-pin is in this case to be just a lock.
4) I have in my POH: before emergency landing remove door
pip-pins.
5) In the case of emergency landing and the doors are still
locked: do you really think it is difficult to open the door? Just kick
the window and it is gone, surely! For "potential rescuer" it is not a
problem at all! It is the smallest worry in this case! Those pip-pins
are clearly visible and understandable.
BTW both of the C172=B4s doors are inflight lockable. I know
some people lock them and some do not. I locked them always when flying
but that was for personal comfort only. When locked the lever was
levelled and the armrest was usable. I am not sure what do they say in
Cessnas POH - my guess is "do open the door locks before landing".
Karl, do you accept my (serious) points?
Would you like to see the pick of my pip-pin equipped door
lever guards?
Raimo OH-XRT
* The Builder's Bookstore
http://www.matronics.com/co============
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