Accumulator

[mshac]

Originally Posted by JMH

Thread revival...
Whats the impact in the type certification for removing the accumulators on an O-2A. Is it a legal mod from the manufacturer POV?
Thanks!

I've read that most O2 owners have removed the accumulators, in fact you'd likely be hard-pressed to find one actively flying that still has them.

Based on this, I don't think there's any issue removing them, any more than there would be an issue removing boots from a plane that came with them. Remove them, issue a corrected W&B, note it it the airframe log and you're golden.

EDIT: I'm a big fan of accumulators on multi engine trainers, where you feather a prop almost every flight. They make in-flight engine restarts 10x smoother. But on a non-training aircraft, where the only time you feather a prop is because you have to, I don't see the value. You lose the weight of a suitcase for something you really don't need. Furthermore, they are just like a strut - if you don't keep them serviced with nitrogen, they won't work.