As many of you may be aware, one of the production changes requested on newer CT’s distributed in North America was the addition of a firewall blanket and oil hose sleeving in the engine compartment in order to provide additional fire protection and reduced cabin noise. These changes were implemented in late 2006. The original firewall is carbon fiber coated with fireproof epoxy resin.

We realized that retro-fitting existing aircraft was highly desirable and asked the factory to supply us with kits to perform the modifications. Subsequently, numbers of aircraft have had the upgrade performed at Flight Design Service Centers around the country.

However, it recently came to our attention that not enough aircraft have benefited from this opportunity and, more importantly, we realized that, in the interest of conformity and enhanced safety for all the planes in the country, the upgrade should be made mandatory.

Now, to answer the obvious questions:

Parts:
Flight Design will supply the parts and materials.

Labor:
The fixed cost at a Flight Design Service Center for the upgrade should be $1450.00; of which $1000.00 will be paid for by the factory and $450.00 will be charged to the aircraft owner (It will be the owners responsibility to bring their plane to the service center and back).

Where:
We strongly recommend having the modification performed at a Flight Design Service Center. There are other locations around the country that are factory trained on Rotax engines and have received documented approval from Flight Design for installing the upgrade. Flight Design will reimburse $1000.00 towards the cost once the upgrade has been completed and after proper compliance documentation has been submitted.

When:
We will soon be issuing a Safety Directive (Service Bulletin) that will require that the upgrade be performed within a year of the date of issuance. We suggest having the procedure completed during the annual or 100 hour inspection.
A couple of items of note:

The details, including cost, are subject to change pending the issuance of the Safety Directive. This Owner news item is provided for informational purposes only and should not be construed as a guarantee to provide said parts, services and remuneration at the above mentioned dollar amounts

In accordance with the ASTM standards, Flight Design does not use notices of corrective action (Safety Directives) to promote or make mandatory non-safety of flight related equipment upgrades or additions.

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