Airworthiness Directive 2004-23-17
one-timeAirworthiness Directives; Mooney Airplane Company, Inc., Model M20M Airplanes
What this AD requires
The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) to supersede Airworthiness Directive 91-03-15, which applies to certain Mooney Airplane Company, Inc., (Mooney) Model M20M airplanes. AD 91-03- 15 currently requires you to replace the tailpipe coupling with improved tailpipe coupling. Since we issued AD 91-03-15, a fire erupted in the lower left cockpit area on one of the airplanes affected by AD 91-03-15. The V-clamp that attaches the exhaust tailpipe to the turbocharger fell off, which allowed the exhaust tailpipe to detach from the turbocharger. Hot exhaust gases from the turbocharger outlet blasted the lower left firewall. This AD requires you to replace the existing radiant heat shield with the new improved design heat shield, deflector kit; replace the existing exhaust tailpipe-to-turbocharger V- band clamp with the new design V-band clamp; and modify the hydraulic brake fluid poly line. We are issuing this AD to prevent the V-clamp from detaching from the turbocharger and to prevent exposure of the firewall to hot exhaust gases, which could result in an in-flight fire. An in-flight fire could lead to loss of control of the airplane and passenger injury.
Which aircraft AD 2004-23-17 applies to
Whether AD 2004-23-17 actually applies to your aircraft (by serial and installed parts) and whether it’s already complied with comes from that aircraft’s records.
How AD compliance is recorded
A valid compliance record (14 CFR 43.9) states:
Tailplate reads a tail number’s logbooks and matches every applicable AD — including this one — to its compliance evidence, with recurring next-due dates computed.
Look up a tail number →Read the full directive (Federal Register)Applicability is derived from the FAA directive corpus and is advisory, not a legal airworthiness determination. Compliance is established only from an aircraft’s actual records.