Aircraft ground maintenance tether asssembly
View Patent ↗A highly visible tether assembly for use on parked aircraft that interconnects the pitot tube covers with the landing gear lock pin thereby assuring removal of both the covers and the lock pin as part of the aircraft preflight check list. The assembly is made of heat and environment resistant materials that avoid instrument and air craft damage during installation and residence.
1. A ground maintenance assembly for an aircraft having at least a pitot tube on opposed sides of a fuselage above a front landing gear having a retracting linkage immobilized by insertion of a locking pin into a locking aperture thereon, said maintenance assembly comprising:
a pitot tube cover for telescopic insertion over each pitot tube;
an expandable tether assembly having opposed elongated straps, each having a distal end connected to one of said pitot tube covers, said tether assembly having a sleeve member with a passage therein, wherein one of said straps has a proximal end fixedly connected to said sleeve member and wherein the other strap has a proximal end connected to first end of an elastic member carried in said passage, said elastic member having a second end connected to said sleeve member whereby the length of the tether assembly is less than the distance about the fuselage between the pitot tubes and in assembly the elastic member is stretched to provide a biasing of the tether assembly against the fuselage; and
a connecting strap having a first end attached to said tether assembly and a second end connected to said locking pin, said connecting strap having sufficient length in assembly to enable insertion of said locking pin in said locking aperture.
2. The ground maintenance assembly as recited in claim 1 said sleeve member is a planar rectangular sheet having opposed longitudinal edges releasably secured by fastening members to form a generally tubular shape with said passage extending therethrough.
3. The ground maintenance assembly as recited in claim 2 wherein said straps and said sleeve member are formed of a heat and environment resistant woven material.
4. The ground maintenance assembly as recited in claim 3 wherein said woven material is a meta-aramid polymer.
5. The ground maintenance assembly as recited in claim 4 wherein said elastic member is subject to ultraviolet degradation upon exposure to ambient sunlit conditions, said elastic member in said sleeve assembly being shielded from said conditions in said passage.
6. The ground maintenance assembly as recited in claim 5 wherein banners carrying notifications for removal before aircraft flight are attached at plural locations on said covers and/or tether assembly.