Whilst flying back from a visit to my father and brother in Yorkshire I looked to the left above the canopy handle to be greeted by the sight no builder wants to see - especially one who has not drilled a single hole in his canopy! A crack.
As history can't be undone there was no point dwelling on the past though I can only assume that I hadn't dressed the edge quite well enough and left a stressor. After a chat with my isnpector and a visit to AC 43.13-1B Figure 3-21 I bought a 1/8" plas-drill (11071) from Avery (Gloster Air Parts - thanks for the usual rapid service Diana and Pete).
I did a test drill on some scrap canopy trim and used an electric drill on slow speed. Drilled the canopy with a small block of wood as a back stop and it was a non-event. I chamfered the hole edge with a fluteless countersink left over from my fibreglass part of the project and all I need now is a label to cover the evidence!
How did it happen. I don't know for sure but I remember on the 6th May Jill and I went to Shobdon and taxying out to the runway after the canopy had been locked the grass surface was terrible and the aircraft shook/rocked really badly. Maybe that was it - who knows?
Let's hope that is the one and only canopy crack G-JBTR will see.
