1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a devices used to service small aircraft.
2. Brief Description of Prior Art
There is a need on occasion to service small aircraft. Small propeller planes often times have a tricycle landing gear, two larger wheels in the middle of the plane and a smaller one under the front nose of the aircraft. When it is required to service the nose landing gear, it is necessary to lift the nose of the aircraft to take weight off the front landing gear. Whereas the middle landing gear has a location to lift the plane using a conventional jack, it is difficult to place a jack under the nose of the aircraft. There is no specific location for jacking and the airframe and skin are easily damaged. Further because the nose of the plane is so light weight placing it on a jack would create an unstable situation where unbalanced forces created in servicing could cause the airplane to fall off the jack. So conventionally pilots, who often service their own small aircraft, will stack sand bags on the tail section of the plane. Enough sand bags will push the tail down and raise the nose and nose landing gear, a few hundred pounds is usually enough. Those familiar with aircraft know that it is generally unadvisable to touch the airframe of an aircraft in a way that it was not designed for. Stacking sand bags on the rear wing of an aircraft is therefore very undesirable and labor intensive, but is common practice.
As will be described, the preferred embodiments of the present invention overcome disadvantages of the prior art.