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Hi Folks,
Need to advise you all about an incident and damage that occurred to my A5 several days ago while trailering from NH to Florida. I transported my A5 for 8 hours and found damage to the wing when I opened the trailer. The U-joint pins and circlips that attach the tube inside the wing to the pivot point seperated and one was missing. Dont know when it occurred as it is not something i was ever taught to look at or pre-flight, but the wing fell and was trapped against the interior wall of the trailer. I left the trailer and plane in North Carolina as Jimmy Andrews advised me not to continue. I secured a spot at a local airport and am awaiting Jimmy's arrival at some point to access.

Just a heads up to all of us owners....check the U-joint connections and be sure all the pins and circlips are there and intact.

Tim

[Username Protected]

Wow... What a tragedy. Thanks for sharing! I will inspect my joints post-haste.

[Username Protected]

I think this raises the question, or at least concern, that trailering for long stretches of bouncing around without the wings in fully spread and locked (secure enough for all the forces of flight) and whether or not they can withstand the bouncing all those trips pushing downward on joints that may be strong enough to sit idly in a hangar, but perhaps not handle lots of vibration and downward force from a long trip where those are at play with the plane configured in "tucked in for sleep" (not travel) setup?

Icon made wing straps for use when using the original open trailer, to support them at the tips where the tail pins holding up the entire wing were always going to be a source of concern over long distances and bumps. I am not sure how one would provide extra support to those area when it's exposed during extended trailering. At the very least, some of those connections may merit Locktite or locking washers where possible to use. Designing a plane to handle the forces flight imposes on it is one thing, but the forces of riding in storage configuration may be very difficult to understand, plan for, and protect against.