Spent a whole shift chasing a phantom avionics fault on a Cessna 172

It was a simple autopilot disconnect warning light that wouldn't clear. I mean, we checked the obvious stuff for hours, but the actual issue was a tiny bit of corrosion on a single pin in a connector under the panel. Has anyone else had a gremlin like that where the fix was way smaller than the hunt?

3 comments

3 Comments

umaanderson1mo ago

Oh man, that's the worst. I once spent an entire afternoon convinced we had a major electrical short, only to find a single frayed wire shielding was just tickling another ground. Felt like a real genius after that six hour treasure hunt for a problem the size of a grain of rice.

noah_chen1726d ago

Last time I had something like that I traced a ground fault for 8 hours. Turns out it was a loose screw in a junction box. Not even a wire. Just metal touching metal. I get the frustration but honestly I kind of enjoy those hunts now. Forces you to slow down and actually map out the whole circuit in your head. Feels good when you finally nail it.

smith.ray1mo ago

Used to think those were just bad luck... but chasing a gremlin like that really teaches you to check the simple stuff first. Now I just assume it's something tiny hiding in plain sight. Saves a lot of headache.