Cessna 400
Maintenance Powerplant; Maintenance Airframe
Maintenance Inspector 4; Maintenance Lead Technician 5; Maintenance Technician 6
Aircraft Equipment Problem Critical; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy
General Maintenance Action
Aircraft
During Phase 2/3/D inspection of a Cessna 441 aircraft; the flight control cables were being inspected. It is required to check the cables every Phase D (24 months). During the inspection; it was found that the RH elevator cable was severely frayed in the aft cabin; under the pulley right as the cable rotates upward to go into the tail section. After removal; it was found that the cable only had two remaining stands [strands]. It is estimated that approximately 60% of the cable was frayed. The frayed area of the cable sits directly under the pulley when the elevator is in the down/resting position. The cable has been replaced and no other locations of frayed cable were detected. This was clearly in a critical fatigue area. We just wanted to relay this find in regard to the severity of the cable condition.
Mechanic reported that a severely frayed control cable was discovered during a routine inspection of a Cessna 400 aircraft.