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Hot take: I wrote off speed tape for years until I saw it holding a King Air together at Wiley Post
I always figured speed tape was a hack for ramp rats who didn't want to do real work, and I'd give anyone crap for using it on a flying plane. Then I walked the ramp at Wiley Post Airport in OKC and watched a shop use it on a King Air 200 leading edge to get the bird home to Tulsa for a real repair, and the pilot said it held at 260 knots the whole way. I still wouldn't sign off on it, but I get now why the old guys say it buys you time when the nearest parts shop is 4 hours out. Any of you ever had a legit reason to grab the roll instead of grounding the plane?
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the_jennifer8d ago
I used to give guys hell for even having a roll in their box. Then I watched a shop patch a cracked fairing on a 172 so the owner could fly it to a shop with the parts on hand instead of paying for a field repair and two days of downtime. That tape held through a two hour flight in gusty winds and the guy saved a grand. Still not something I'd ever sign off on, and you bet I check every inch of a plane before I'd fly it, but I get it now. It's not a fix, it's a bridge to get you somewhere you can do the real thing.
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