What was your worst job,worst day,or worst night fix aircraft?

L

lstwhknight

Member
Oct 25, 2002
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One night I''ll remember for years to come was as follows.
I checked in for my graveyard shift and was told my job for the nite was to repack a nose gear at the gate,on an MD-80.
So i went and got all the paperwork together,and started my search for tools to complete the task.I needed an airctaft jack to get the nose gear off the ground.After a hour searching i finally found it at the hanger.I towed it to the terminal,and jacked the aircraft.
The parts arrived and we removed the strut on the nose gear.The gland nut was oversized and not marked.Now we had the nose gear all apart and no parts.So I searched the computer for the right part.I was shocked to see we had one in stock.I ordered it.
Next I went to get the 5606 service can,only to find it broken at the filter housing,and no new filter hsg available.i removed the filter hsg and connected the hose direct.Now to fill it with fresh 5606.the stock of 5606 at the terminal was empty.I ordered a case of quart cans from stock A.O.G.they drove out and delivered skydrol.As the stores had restocked the 5606 with the wrong fluid and didnt know it.So now i faced no 5606 anywhere.I got in the truck and drove to the hanger hoping to find some,in a hanger that can park a 747 and 3 Dc10s and 2 727''s I figured there might be some left somewhere.(Did I mention they had just closed the hanger and layed off 5,000 mechanics)I found A 55 gallon drum of 5606 under the stairs in bay 2.Now to find a pump,to get it in the can.Driving to stores the axle of the truck came out,losing my brakes and transmission I was now walking.Carring the 5606 can and my tool bag.I radioed for a ride.The terminal was going to sent someone as soon as a truck got back.So seeing a crew bus I flagged it down,and got a ride as time was running out.then i saw my ride drive by,stopped the bus and joined him in the search for a pump again.Finally we found a pump at the terminal and drove back to the hanger.broke open the seal on the drum and filled the can.daylight was breaking and the strut was still on the ground.I installed the seals with extra care as we didnt have any back up parts if I screwed up in any step of the repair and pinched the new seal.I lowered the aircraft onto the strut slowly,everything was going smooth at last.but I knew any time the airline across the ramp was going to get busy.I had to work as fast as I could before the tail of the aircraft caught a jet blast from a plane taxiing out.Finally the gear was in place,down and locked.I could begin filling it with 5606.I got the strut filled and serviced to the correct height.I removed the jack and tools,and hoped they never wanted that job done at the gate again.The passenagers where a little ticked as it left 30 minutes late.If they only knew what i went through to get it done so it could fly.
 
LstWhKnight, are you still a midnight elf? How many years?

I like the simple jobs that turn into a complete cluster.

How long does it take to change a static wick? There's just one screw attaching it.
 
It's always amazed me how even the most simple jobs can turn into ordeals. I suppose that if it was easy every time then anyone could do it.

My worst night ever was when I was working in a small line station by myself one night and was assigned by Maintenance Control to see why the right aft lav on an MD80 wouldn't dump.

After hooking up our lav cart, I operated the dump valve several times and could tell that the cable was still connected and the valve was operating - yet nothing came out even though the tank was full. I opened up the back wall of the aft cargo bin, only to discover that the lav dump tube running from the right lav tank to the dump port on the left side of the fuselage had almost completely collapsed due to a pressurization leak caused by a missing seal at the dump port.

I checked our stock and found we had both a lav dump tube and seal for the dump port in stock, so I got them and opened up the rest of the back wall of the cargo bin. This particular MD80 had a two-piece dump tube held in place by half a dozen clamps and connected by a short rubber duct and, although I was dismayed to note that the entire thing had been heavily sprayed with Dinol, it didn't look as if it would be a hard job to change. Little did I know.

Each clamp had been completely encapsulated in a coating of now-rock-hard Dinol corrosion preventative, requiring almost half an hour to remove each clamp. After finally getting them all loose, I got several buckets and rags and began taking loose the ends of the tube, starting first at the fuselage end. All was going well, with a minumum of mess until I got to the tank end of the tube. As I pulled away the tube from the end of the tank there was a sudden rushing sound, and the entire contents of the right aft lav tank came with it, all over me and everything else in a six foot radius.

After half an hour standing under the ice cold emergency shower (and a quick change of clothes), and another hour cleaning up the aft cargo bin, I discovered that the same pressurization leak that had collapsed the tube had pulled the large rubber seal off the lav dump valve - using it to form a perfect plug inside the dump tube. So, in addition to changing the tube and fuselage dump port seal, I also had to change the tank dump valve, which we didn't have at my station that night. A simple two hour job had turned into an all night ordeal, and I still had to MEL and lockout the lav.

Even ten years, and several thousand hot showers, after the fact, I still think of this night whenever someone starts telling me how simple and easy my job is.
 
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On 11/21/2002 10:36:32 AM Steiner wrote:

LstWhKnight, are you still a midnight elf? How many years?

I like the simple jobs that turn into a complete cluster.

"How long does it take to change a static wick? There's just one screw attaching it."
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Yes I am still a midnight elf,been one for the last 10 years now.Have 19 years with the company.
I have a few more stories to tell LOL.
normally the static wick that is bad is on top of the vertical fin,and the base plate is shot.Requiring new rivets,thats how my luck runs.One screw and several rivets!
 
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Even ten years, and several thousand hot showers, after the fact, I still think of this night whenever someone starts telling me how simple and easy my job is.

I laughed so hard reading your post.I think we all have had our shot at getting the blue shower.
One night we had a 737/800 with a blow lav line in the aft pit.Everyone was pretty busy,but one guy who was famous for ducking jobs and hiding out.He was sitting the the cabin reading a maz when the lead walked thru the aircraft and saw him.You Come With Mewas all I heard.I still crack up thinking of that night.That guy bucked and squirmed to get out of that job,but it didnt work.He was dressed like an astronaut with he finally started.Couldn't have happened to a better guy!!!!
 
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One more story,
One cold wet windy night,I was assigned to change the apu on an MD80 at the gate.We dropped the apu in the pouring rain standing in 2 inches of water all night.the apu from stores had been robbed.missing the starter,fuel control,and generator.So in addition to installing the apu we had to build it on the ground in the rain.
I was soaked thru,my boots full,every inch of my skin wet,we finally got it up in the a/c.finishing off all the odds and ends of the job.I had to stand in the aft stairwell to get warm for a minute,when the other mechanic came over and said we had to drop it again!I said No Way!
I went to see what the problem was,the boot wasn't on for the pneumatic duct,it was folded under.I got my frozen fingers in and pulled for all I was worth.I wasn't about to start over.I got the boot in place,and told the other guy give me a minute to warm my hands and I'll clamp it.God I was happy when he clamped it.We started it,Everything good but the oil level.I told the Captain it would take just a minute to top it off.He said don't worry they can fill it in houston.We are going.
Man was i glad to hear that.We pushed the flight back and waved him off.I punched out and drove home with the heater on high!!!Had to de-rust all my snap on tools for weeks afterwards,as I was so tired and wet and cold I put my tool bag away wet.So that job haunted me for a few weeks after it was done.
 
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Here are most of my worst nights in a nutshell.
Does anyone miss the DC10's?I was glad to see them go.Working in the oil soaked patio of the number 2 engine,with the wind blasting you,the rain coming in sideways made for some not so fond memories.
Changing a CF6-10/50 on a DC10 in one night and watching it fly over the fence at 7am or changing a JT9D on a 47 overnight,made me wish I worked for Boeing at times.Watching them take 7 days to r/r 1 engine on a 47.Everything new,they have it all.Listening to the mechanics talk about how many millions they had in thier 401ks.No wonder Boeing Drags it out,they need the bucks,lol.I used the leather gloves they threw away for a year,they had one spot of grease on them lol.I was glad to see the 47 leave the fleet also.
As we say good bye to the A300, DC10, 747, MD80, 727,I welcome the new generation 737/700/800/900, 757/200/300, 767/200/300 and 777/200/300 as they are a breeze to work on.Whenever I start to think I got the rotten job of the night,I think back to what it used to be like(like having overhead cables snap and knock people off the wing,changing a 47 main i/b flap or an engine stand snap and drop a fresh CF6 on the ground after you just crawed out from under it).I Smile and grab my bag and think bring it on,there isn't anything as bad as the old days.LOL.Good ole daysdoesn't apply in aviation,the good days are now as we learn from past mistakes and improve everything we do.
 
Hey, I miss the DC-10s. Good airplane, easy to work on, great manuals, and the patio, while no fun, was just another item in aviation that separated real mechanics from the podium princes. Not that bad with the proper support equipment.

Besides, if you were up in the bird's nest, nobody came to visit. It was like being in a fuel tank, as everyone else was happy it wasn't them.

Have you been noticing how nobody seems to remember how to work on a 727 anymore? Uh, where's the FIM? No got FIM. You mechanic. You fix.
 
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On 11/22/2002 12:28:30 PM lstwhknight wrote:

I laughed so hard reading your post.I think we all have had our shot at getting the blue shower.
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Thanks, glad you enjoyed it. I didn't think it was funny at the time, but as time goes by it gets funnier.
 
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