Flyingfortress Posted February 24, 2006 Share Posted February 24, 2006 I'm no brain surgeon, I know what a FOD cover is and what it's for. What I don't know is this: What does F-O-D stand for? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Darren Roberts Posted February 24, 2006 Share Posted February 24, 2006 Foreign Object and Debris or something of that nature. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
terryt Posted February 24, 2006 Share Posted February 24, 2006 FOD stands for Foreign Object Damage. Looking for FOD on an airstrip/aricraft carrier is a daily thing. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
dreammh Posted February 24, 2006 Share Posted February 24, 2006 Basically it means any wild items (e.g. screwdrivers, nuts, bolts, can....) lying on the PDS, taxiway or airfield that pose a risk of getting sucked into the intake while the engine is running. FOD covers are cover put on the intakes and vents to prevent FOD from getting in while the aircraft is on ground. (In this case, the FOD refers to those small screws, nuts, bolts that a tech may forgefully leave around, or even little birds and insects from flying in and build a nest...) On some aircrafts (most Russian jets) they have a vent style FOD cover build inside the intakes where it can be lowered to prevent FOD fom getting sucked while the engine is running. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Cleveland Model Resins Posted February 24, 2006 Share Posted February 24, 2006 Best bit about FOD guards I reckon is they are generally hoofing great big red things that cover the whole intake mouth ... and invariably they are stencilled in big letters 'REMOVE BEFORE FLIGHT' .... ahem! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
dreammh Posted February 24, 2006 Share Posted February 24, 2006 This is to ensure that the groundcrew remembers to take the FOD covers off before then engine starts, thus the bright red color and the Remove Before Flight stencil. But seriously, I don't its possible for any groundcrew to miss that large item. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Cleveland Model Resins Posted February 24, 2006 Share Posted February 24, 2006 Yep .. thats what I mean .... ahem. Mind you, I have a spanner left in an intake of a Lightning .... and a pair of gloves in a Phantom intake .. and a small Scottish Airman stuck under the nose section of a Hercules underwing tank many moons ago when I worked for 'liz haha Quote Link to post Share on other sites
KursadA Posted February 24, 2006 Share Posted February 24, 2006 (edited) On some aircrafts (most Russian jets) they have a vent style FOD cover build inside the intakes where it can be lowered to prevent FOD fom getting sucked while the engine is running. Which Russian jets other than the Mig-29 and Su-27 have such covers inside the intake? (You said "most Russian jets", just curious?) As far as I know at least the one in the Mig-29 was intended to allow the aircraft to be operated from semi-prepared strips if necessary. You can say that they are anti-FOD measures of some sort, but that's not necessarily their primary function. Edited February 24, 2006 by KursadA Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Scooby Posted February 24, 2006 Share Posted February 24, 2006 Basically it means any wild items (e.g. screwdrivers, nuts, bolts, can....) lying on the PDS, taxiway or airfield that pose a risk of getting sucked into the intake while the engine is running.FOD covers are cover put on the intakes and vents to prevent FOD from getting in while the aircraft is on ground. (In this case, the FOD refers to those small screws, nuts, bolts that a tech may forgefully leave around, or even little birds and insects from flying in and build a nest...) On some aircrafts (most Russian jets) they have a vent style FOD cover build inside the intakes where it can be lowered to prevent FOD fom getting sucked while the engine is running. FOD is anything that can damage an aircraft. Not just what we TECHs leave behind. It includes rocks and stones. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
twahl Posted February 24, 2006 Share Posted February 24, 2006 FOD is anything that can damage an aircraft. Not just what we TECHs leave behind.It includes rocks and stones. And oyster shells. At Langley it seemed like at a certain time of the year the gulls or some other bird would have a field day with them. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
A6BSTARM Posted February 24, 2006 Share Posted February 24, 2006 Don't forget Biological FOD. A squadron down the flight line from me found some real live birds (starlings I think was the word) in the intake of one of thier Prowlers. It has been pretty cold over the weekend and the birds sort of hung out there since it offered a nice wind break and with enough of them in there a warm place. Needless to say an engine change and a plane wash came up along with a reminder from all in charge about the need to put the covers in place prior to going home or wrapping up the jets for the night. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
dreammh Posted February 24, 2006 Share Posted February 24, 2006 Which Russian jets other than the Mig-29 and Su-27 have such covers inside the intake? (You said "most Russian jets", just curious?) As far as I know at least the one in the Mig-29 was intended to allow the aircraft to be operated from semi-prepared strips if necessary. You can say that they are anti-FOD measures of some sort, but that's not necessarily their primary function. Okay....on 'some' Basically only fulcrums and flankers. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
William G Posted February 24, 2006 Share Posted February 24, 2006 This is to ensure that the groundcrew remembers to take the FOD covers off before then engine starts, thus the bright red color and the Remove Before Flight stencil.But seriously, I don't its possible for any groundcrew to miss that large item. Hmmmm Bright Freakin Yellow... and still a Pilot and Crew Chief forgot to pull the Intake Plug on one of the jets in the 14th TFS years ago... Just a simple Vinyl and Foam cover local manufacture... And Whoops... So yeah they are usually pulled with no problems But I have also forgotten how many Pins I have pulled on aircraft entering hotpits before a flight, or one that I had come back with a tail hook pin in ( sans streamer )... Not fun explaining that to the pilot as you are fueling... William G Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Flankerman Posted February 24, 2006 Share Posted February 24, 2006 Okay....on 'some' Basically only fulcrums and flankers. The latest variants of the MiG-29 do not have the auxiliary intake doors in the roof of the Leading Edge Root Extension (LERX) - the space taken up by the intakes is now used to house fuel. I would assume that the retractable FOD cover in the main intake is also removed ? - else there would be no way for the air to enter the intake. The Su-27/30 still has a rectractable mesh screen in the main intakes - it never needed auxiliary doors. There is one other Russian aircraft with a retractable FOD screen - the Yak-130. It has a neat arrangement where the one door serves both to blank off the intake when down (the air entering the intake from the TOP of the intake/LERX) and blank off the top intake when up. Ken Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Capricorn Posted February 24, 2006 Share Posted February 24, 2006 The latest variants of the MiG-29 do not have the auxiliary intake doors in the roof of the Leading Edge Root Extension (LERX) - the space taken up by the intakes is now used to house fuel.I would assume that the retractable FOD cover in the main intake is also removed ? - else there would be no way for the air to enter the intake. :lol: The Su-27/30 still has a rectractable mesh screen in the main intakes - it never needed auxiliary doors. There is one other Russian aircraft with a retractable FOD screen - the Yak-130. It has a neat arrangement where the one door serves both to blank off the intake when down (the air entering the intake from the TOP of the intake/LERX) and blank off the top intake when up. Ken The latest Mig 29 variants have gone from a solid to a retractable mesh screen as in the SU27. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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