Wire mis-calc

[chasingmars]

Despite having given away all our freedoms to own machine guns, etc. we have the option here of fending off the FAA-equivilant inspector and running with an accredited person from the SAAA (our EAA) & getting him in along the course of the project (not required, but useful) so such things can be discussed along the way rather than shouted over an aircraft you think is ready to fly. Isn't it similar there???

Something fairly similar here, except I think we run the order in reverse, the inspection process is delegated by the Minister of Transport to an organization called MD-RA, you pay them a fee for the inspection (which despite being quite high just covers "administrative costs") and they send out a volunteer, who gets paid only travel costs (which are again damn expensive if he doesn't live nearby).

 

If you reach loggerheads with him, you theoretically can go to Transport Canada, and get them to rule, you don't have to go through MD-RA, but I gather that once you do so, costs go through the roof, so I don't think it's really done in practice, except perhaps up North or whereever that TC would be cheaper than the travel costs, maybe.

 

At least, that's what I've gathered so far. Others have more experience with MD-RA than me no doubt. All I know it that I filed my "intent to build" about 18 months ago, and when I log in, it still tells me that the status is "Pending" or somesuch And COPA says that this way of doing things is far more responsive than Transport Canada was!

 

On the other hand, I gather from chatting with people that the actual MD-RA volunteers are pretty reasonable, they are all completed-builders themselves apparently.

[Rui]

My experience with the MD-RA has been that the admin sucks (3 consecutive scheduling snafus causing a 3 month wait for my first inspection), but the inspector was great (a homebuilder, aircraft mechanic, AND Westjet pilot). My only small complaint about him is that he wasn't as familiar with composite construction as I thought he should be.

 

I hear that MANY other builders have had similar experiences with the admin. My advice is to keep on them and call back at least every week if you are waiting for them to set up and inspection.