Heard a pilot on the ramp call a missing fairing a 'speed mod' with a straight face

I was doing a walkaround on a King Air in Tulsa yesterday and overheard the pilot talking to his buddy. He pointed at a missing wing root fairing and said, 'Oh that? That's just a custom speed mod, saves us a knot or two.' He was totally serious. I just shook my head and wrote it up. It's wild what some folks will try to pass off as 'not a big deal' when it's literally a piece of the aircraft's designed airflow. That little fiberglass piece is there for a REASON, you know? Makes you wonder what other 'creative maintenance' stories are out there. What's the most ridiculous excuse you've ever heard for skipping a write-up?

2 comments

2 Comments

elizabeththomas7d ago

Wait, did @betty_ramirez5 just call that a minor drag thing?

betty_ramirez57d ago

Okay but is a missing wing root fairing actually a safety of flight issue, or just a minor drag thing? I've seen plenty of planes fly just fine with way worse cosmetic stuff going on. Maybe he was just making a dumb joke about it.