WASILLA, ALASKA – As part of its continuing mission to support the worldwide fleet of Cessna Caravan family aircraft, Airforms, Inc. has obtained EASA STC approval for a procedure that provides repairs to worn Nose Gear Torque Links and Nose Gear Shock Struts, and replacement of their respective attaching parts with FAA PMA Approved oversize components. The EASA STC number is 10062053.

“Torque link joints can have a tendency to loosen over time as the torque link pins, bolt and bushings wear. This wear is also often found in the attachment lugs on the upper and lower strut barrel of the nose gear. Once this occurs the nose gear is prone to shimmy, especially when operating the larger diameter nose wheel,” said Steve Hunter, Sales and Marketing Executive for Airforms, Inc.

“The self-piloting oversized reamers we developed assist with proper re-sizing & alignment of the torque link bushings and the upper and lower attachment lugs on the nose gear strut barrel in one easy step, allowing for installation of the FAA PMA Approved oversized torque link pins and bolts,” continued Hunter. “ The entire procedure is easily accomplished with the nose gear assembly still installed on the aircraft. We are helping many Caravan operators actually reach the 40,000 cycle life limit on the nose gear assemblies, and many operators and maintenance facilities that tried it out on 1 aircraft have come back to purchase everything they need to do multiple additional aircraft.”

This STC has previously been approved by the FAA (STC # SA02469AK), and is now approved for the European market.

Highlights of the STC include:

  • Substantial cost savings over the life of the aircraft
  • Oversized FAA PMA’d pins & bolts available in .010, .020 and .030 oversizes
  • Standard sized pins & bolts also available
  • FAA/EASA approved STC sold separately
  • Precision machined pins and bolts are Cad plated for long life
  • Tool kits available with piloted reamers for all 3 oversizes

Airforms is the world’s leading supplier of replacement engine baffles for a wide range of general aviation aircraft; products also include an expanding line of turboprop aircraft PMA parts, STCs, and hard to source parts for fleet operators. Airforms maintains an FAA approved manufacturing system for PMA parts.

For more information, including a secure online marketplace and catalog, visit www.airforms.biz. Airforms operates from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. CST)business days and can be reached directly at (907) 357-8244.