How cold is too cold the fly? Mike, Paul, and Colleen answer this question, and help an owner solve radio problems, advise an owner to fix his probes, and describe the process to become an A&P in the latest episode. Send your questions and comments to [email protected] for a chance to be on the show.

Full notes below:

Chad has a Cirrus and he’s looking for some cold-weather guidance. A mechanic told him that subzero temps aren’t recommended for a piston. The POH says that flights below -23 degrees Celsius need the cowl inlet plates. The hosts agree that there’s no problem flying in cold weather, but cold starting requires some care and preheating. Mike said the only problem with low oil temperature is that it doesn’t boil off the moisture, and low cylinder head temperatures could bring lead scavenging problems. Colleen said that lead deposits only matter on valves because it could prevent them from seating properly. But, that can be cleaned off if it occurs.

Andy has an LX7, a turbocharged airplane. His TIT sensors don’t seem to be working. He’s been using CHT and EGT as a proxy for TIT and he wants to know if that’s a problem. Why not just fix it, Mike says. Andy said he is planning to fix it at the next annual, but Mike said to deal with it now. They recommend a range of troubleshooting options, but agree that it's not a probe issue.

Darrell has a radio in his Ercoupe, but above 1,200 rpm it is static-y and unreadable. He’s checked the antenna, the coax, the mags, and more. Paul said it’s most likely a connection issue. He recommends starting with the Veclro microphone key switch. Next move to the microphone plug, which often oxidizes. The hosts also recommend checking the P-lead.

Chase wants to get his A&P based on some of his own owner maintenance, refurb work, and building an airplane. He wants to know how to log his time. Mike said this is highly variable based on the inspector’s preferences, so he recommends calling the FSDO to ask what they want. When Mike went through this process he went back and recreated some of his previous experience on an Excel spreadsheet. Paul helps his employees get their A&P by recording the N-number, date, description, and time in a logbook. It’s important to note that there’s no calendar time limit of how far back you can go.