IDEAL AD COMPLIANCE DOC PACKAGE?

[DCarlton]

For the folks that have experienced many aircraft, what's the best documentation package you've seen for AD compliance?  What format?  With older aircraft, there's tons of history and a file drawer of documentation.  How do you round all of that up into a nice tidy one stop AD package?  How hard is it to start from scratch and review the aircraft and engines entire AD history or do most mechanics just focus on new ADs subsequent to the last annual?  

[EricJ]

In A&P school we had access to the AirResearch tools and used those as well as the FAA site, which has since been revamped into the Dynamic Regulatory System (drs.faa.gov).   There are other subscription-based systems that are also used but I don't have any familiarity with them.

The AirResearch site at the time worked a lot like the FAA site at the time, with the main difference being that any document references embedded in the AirResearch site had hot links, so you could follow document chains more quickly than doing it manually on the FAA site.   Since the FAA site has changed so much, though, it's not a relevant comparison any more.

The FAA DRS site has a bit of a learning curve, and there are a few vids around that help understand it a bit better and make it a lot easier to use.   I use it pretty much exclusively now and find that it doesn't take too long to do a full search history on an aircraft.  You do still have to search some appliances and engine stuff separately, but to me it's not difficult to do once you figure out how the filters work.   The secret seems to be to not over-specify the filters, less is more, usually.

For recording compliance there are some systems that make the docs prettier, and I redid everything with The Aviation Database format since we had access to the airresearch tools in school.   Those copied into a Word file and since then I just add entries by editing the document and adding text as appropriate.   AD record entries don't need to be very big, so it's not too hard to do.   Having an entry in the affected logbook and then referencing it in the collective AD record is useful practice.   It is a really good idea to have the collective stuff together in one document, though, or one each for airframe, engine, propeller, so that they can travel with those components if they go away.   Spreadsheets work, too.    Even hand-written record sheets can be good if they're maintained consistently.

https://www.airresearch.com/

https://drs.faa.gov/browse   Click on "Airworthiness Directive" on the top left, then "AD Final Rules", then adjust the filter entries as desired.   Finding the appropriate Make can be tricky since many companies changed names a few times, but often you don't need to if you select only Model instead and leave Make empty.

 

[kortopates]

I highly recommend Adlog.com
after the first year it’s under $50 a year annually.
see their website for what they provide.
I sign off my own annuals but i got to believe the service will save you more than the subscription cost when your IA has to do your AD report since they will all be neatly organized in a 3 ring binder with a new checklist at each annual.


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[Schllc]

I usually use those little signature sticky tabs in my logs and have a reference sheet. 

[Pinecone]

I have AdLog on both my planes.

But @jetdriven, who does my annuals, has his own form to track ADs.  

[bigmo]

For you guys using ADLog, what’s the ballpark price in the initial setup? 
My plane is 54 years old…I’ve got them all in one master excel, and it’s about 98% complete, but there’s a few really old items that just can’t be sussed out. Modern (call it 1990’s to current) record keeping is all good.

[toto]

I think it’s about $200 for the initial ADlog setup. 

[Pinecone]

Best thing would be to go on their site and fill out the form for a quote.

No charge and you get the exact price.