Disclaimer:  Hello Wings and Wheels supporters!  I know I have written a couple of “Bubble gum” pieces here in the last few months, but this time, I’d like to get a bit more serious and discuss some A&P stuff.  Since this newsletter is primarily focused on the U.S. even though it is sent internationally, we are going to look at the U.S. way of doing things. 

TCDS?  What the heck is that??

If you want to help out your friendly A&P that I know you visit at least on a yearly basis, there is some basic information that you need to know about your glider.  The most important information besides the manuals for your sailplane is contained in the Type Certificate Data Sheet or TCDS.  This certificate contains a ton of relevant information about your sailplane that maybe you didn’t know.  By the way, this document is also the way the FAA views your sailplane, and the information pertaining to it. It describes required equipment, control surface deflections, and limitations of that aircraft as well as a plethora of other useful information.  The information contained inside of it is considered mandatory for standard certificated aircraft, and good suggestions for experimental aircraft. By the way, spoiler alert for you motor glider folks out there, there is a separate TCDS for your engine and propeller as well.

Hey, all you cool cats and kittens, let’s start an adventure!

OK, Let’s get started on our TCDS adventure!  First, let’s go to everyone's favorite website for fascinating reading material, the FAA!  Exciting, right?  I know you can’t wait so here’s a link to the main TCDS page HERE.  Now, the next step is to look up the TCDS for your particular sailplane.  In this example, I am going to use a Discus 2b.  Here’s a quick link for you: Discus 2b TCDS.  Let’s open this bad boy up, and see what’s inside, shall we?  It’s like Christmas!

Section I is for a Discus 2a, which is certified on the same type certificate as the 2b.  Often times in the power plane world, where you can have a 737 under one type certificate and 15 different variants of that type, it is important to ensure you are looking at the correct information for the variant you are working on.  So, moving on to Section II, we find the information for a Discus 2b.  Section II gives you airspeed limits as well as V speeds, CG range, etc.  One of the awesome things about section I is it also gives you the datum, as well as the leveling means to do a weight and balance on your glider.  Steve Hill has an excellent series about doing this published in the Feb, Mar, and April issues of Soaring magazine last year if you want to know more.  Additionally, useful information in this section for your friendly A&P is the correct control surface throw, which is useful in re-rigging primary control surfaces that have been removed.  I say your A&P because WE WOULD NEVER REMOVE A PRIMARY CONTROL SURFACE WITHOUT SUPERVISION OF A QUALIFIED A&P WOULD WE???  No?  Right answer.

Just the high points, please.

Section III is applicable to the Discus 2C, so we can skip over that.  Next comes the part that says “Information Applicable to all Models”.  Let’s go hit up some of the high lights!  You will notice under “Import Requirements” which serial numbers are eligible for a standard certificate.  As we move down in our reading, we find out why a standard certificate is such a pain in the keister.  The section titled “Equipment” is the section that gives me nightmares as an A&P.  There is a list of basic required equipment for Day VFR, and another list of additional equipment for cloud flying.  Spoiler alert!  You can’t fly a glider in the clouds in the United States unless you file a flight plan.  So that’s not happening, and we can ignore the cloud flying section.  However, a couple of fascinating things day VFR requires in the 2b:  An outside air temperature gauge if you’re flying with water ballast, and either a parachute or a seat back cushion approximately 3.94” in thickness.  So, this means if you’re one of those tall folks who can’t wear a parachute with the glider, you must have a seat cushion.  Taking the seat back cushion or parachute out is not an option for that (Standard Certificated) glider to be legally flown.

And now, the rest of the story

Finally, we have the NOTES.  This is the section where the FAA just covers their butt, especially with European certified aircraft.  There are some real gotchas in this section, and I have seen many a glider that was not able to be signed off for annual because of one of these notes.  Note 2 is handy because it shows all the placards that are required to be in plain sight of the PIC while flying.  If the sailplane does not have these placards, it is not able to be signed off on an annual inspection.  (Note that I am careful when I have my A&P hat on to not say something is “un-airworthy”.  I can’t say what is and what is not airworthy.  That falls to the PIC or the FAA to determine.  I can only refuse to sign my name to a particular aircraft). Note 3 is the one I see get a lot of people, and this is where the FAA covers its rear, and where you, as a pilot or owner needs to be cautious.  Note 3 says: 

Airworthiness Limitations are specified in the LIMITATION section of the Flight Manual, in the Instructions for Continued Airworthiness (Maintenance Manual), and in the “Airworthiness Limitations Section for Sailplanes Model Discus-2a and Discus-2b”, February 2003 edition, LBA-approved March 13, 2003. For the Discus-2c, the Airworthiness Limitation Section was LBA-approved on June 18, 2009. These documents are FAA-approved. These LIMITATIONS specify mandatory replacement times and operating limitations and may not be changed without FAA approval.

What does this mean?  It means that anything in the flight manual or maintenance manual is also required in order for that sailplane to be deemed airworthy in the FAA’s eyes.  I’m willing to bet that there is an extensive 3,000 hour, 6,000 hour, etc. inspection in that maintenance manual that must be complied with.  Why?  Because the FAA just told you so on the TCDS.  Don’t play with this one.  It’s an easy way out for an insurance company in the event of a claim.
 

Note 4 is fun because that is only applicable to composite aircraft. It states:  “All external portions of the glider exposed to sunlight must be painted white except the surface for the areas provided for registration marking, wingtips, outboard end of ailerons, nose of fuselage, and rudder.”  This is because any variation of colors exposes your fiberglass baby to heat differences which can unevenly heat and weaken the glue which is holding your sailplane together.  That’s bad.  Weak is bad.

Completing your tour

So there you have it folks, a tour of your TCDS.  Take a few moments to look up the TCDS for your glider, or the glider you fly the most sometime. For owners, I also recommend printing that bad boy out and keeping it in your documents binder.  It has a lot of awesome stuff that is handy to be able to snatch up at a moment's notice.  I leave you with this final thought;  If your glider is standard certificated, this entire article, as well as the entire TCDS applies to you.  If your glider is experimental, it may or may not apply to your sailplane. We can save that discussion for another day. Have a great week, we’ll see ya next time!

Mitch Hudson has been avidly flying gliders since he was 14 years old. He is a retired Air Force Navigator who also has hobbies of exercising his ATP rating to fly regional jets around the country and using his A&P rating to keep all matter of flying machines in the air. Mitch has flown more regional and national soaring contests than he cares to count and has crewed at two World Gliding Championships. He and his wife live in Colorado, keep a hangar in Moriarty, New Mexico, and flies happily with whichever club will put up with him.