Came across this article, thought it would be enjoyed here.
Long story short, a fake distributor of jet engine parts has been forging documentation for turbine blades, nuts for rotor assemblies, seals, bushings, and all sorts of other parts and as of now these have been found installed on 126 engines
Parts are not "fake".
Engine parts are usually life limited, as in after a certain number of time or cycles they need to be binned and cannot be repaired any longer. I'll bet this group was forging the times and cycles to get better prices for their parts.
In reply to Fueled by Caffeine :
Well, fake is not the most accurate word, counterfeit is the FAA term. And it is a big problem that started with substandard quality nuts and bolts (the reason why we order bolts and get 20 sheets of paper with them!) and has progressed to complex systems.
There were enough good reasons for me not to fly, but thanks for making me aware of yet another one. 
In reply to 1988RedT2 :
You're welcome.
Actually, while it's a major pain for mechanics and purchasing departments, the regulations have been pretty effective as long as you deal with reputable parts dealers. Where you get in trouble is having to scour the country for that one part that hasn't been made in 25 years and you find one available from Karl in Pigs Scrotum, Arkansas... or worse from outside the country. Used to be the packaging or lack thereof was a clue......
In reply to triumph7 :
The one you find in Pigs Scrotum is probably the real McCoy. It's the one you get on Amazon for a crazy low price with free shipping and unintelligible installation instructions that's probably bogus.
1988RedT2 said:In reply to triumph7 :
The one you find in Pigs Scrotum is probably the real McCoy. It's the one you get on Amazon for a crazy low price with free shipping and unintelligible installation instructions that's probably bogus.
The words "GRAYDE ATE" on top are a good clue too.
In reply to 1988RedT2 :
Maybe but he's probably trying to get rid of the counterfeit he bought from Amazon....
triumph7 said:In reply to 1988RedT2 :
Maybe but he's probably trying to get rid of the counterfeit he bought from Amazon....
Tell me about it. Even the "Loctite" that comes via Amazon is suspect. The last bottle of "blue" that I bought through them was filled with some sort of clear liquid, definitely NOT Loctite, and the bottle looked nothing like what Loctite shows on their website.
We were taking long threaded rod and cutting them short, stamping a code and chamfering the ends. We had a "nutter" machine that threaded the nuts onto the rods. These were sold with gaskets to a large refinery in Lemont, Illinois.
The experienced knucklehead from a big competitor running our program just tossed the rod on racks and chopped away. Refinery QC guys came to audit us and literally blew a gasket. There was no traceability if a problem occurred. Needless to say they pulled all business from our shop that day.
Someday's it's scary what's going on out there.
About 30 years ago I was a test lab supervisor for a company that manufactured aircraft fuel and lubricating pumps. We would have field inspectors from our customers come in to observe and verify our test procedures and material certifications. Some of the time they would make an appointment other times it was a surprise visit. My suspicion is that some of these positions have been eliminated due to budget cuts.
You'll need to log in to post.
