by Sonex519 » Thu Apr 13, 2017 3:39 pm
I looked at a Sonex for sale and I have some concerns about possible unseen damage. The owner told me the previous owner had an off-airport landing in 2012 in which both wingtips touched the ground. The right wing has a skin patch on the outboard leading edge. The left wing looks OK, but the upper flap skin in the inboard trailing corner is wrinkled. The owner said the flap contacted the fuselage side, and that panel of fuselage skin was replaced. The wings and rivet lines look straight. I don't know if it has any odd flying habits because I wasn't able to fly it. The airframe log notes the repairs, but it doesn't say whether the wings were removed and the spars inspected. I'm especially concerned about the left spar. It seems to me there must have been considerable rearward force on the wing, and the spar must have flexed in order for the flap to contact the fuselage. Should I be concerned about stress to the spar, attachment bolts and holes? If such an incident happened to your plane, would you remove the wings and inspect the spars? If so, what signs of stress or damage would you look for?
Tim Gaffney
Dayton OH
Not actively building