Royson,
You do bring up some good points and they are valid to a point. None of us should have to worry that the FAA is watching us; that if any mistake is made, they will come down on the owner like a ton of bricks and impress their boss that the aircraft owner was kept in line on his watch. Many FAA employees are reasonable, some are strictly by the book. It all depends on the luck of the draw. Some FAA employees own their own aircraft: restore classics or build kit planes. They are truely interested in aviation. Others could care less about aviation and are strictly bureacratic in their thinking (very 2 dimensional).
I will have to say that I am in an unfortunate position. Since I work for the FAA myself as an aircraft certification engineer, I could be held to a higher standard. If I bought and operated an airplane with known 337 issues, I risk being disciplined in some way.
Also, please understand that the reason for filling out a 337 is to keep track of a major repair or alteration that does not follow the manufacturers own methods of maintenance. Major repairs affect the primary structure, how the airplane handles, etc. and as such, the 337 ensures that an FAA designee has approved the fix and that the information is part of the permanent records. God forbid if the repair was not done properly, an IA did not look at it, and the airplane suffers an inflight failure of the primary structure. That is all I am thinking about. A good FAA inspector should not violate an aircraft just because of paperwork, but because safety could not be assured (at least that is the theory). Also, an IA is properly trained to do this kind of work (usually not the owner) or he/she could not become an IA (again, theory as there are some unqualified IA's and A&P's out there).
It all boils down to buyer beware. Do you want an airplane that has some missing 337's for the major repair work done and be exposed to a possible violation? Chances are, it won't be discovered - but it only has to happen once to spoil your day. By the way, if there are missing 337's and an FAA inspector discovers it, then the last A&P who did the annual could be held responsible.
Above all, my safety and the safety of my passengers depends on a good airplane in proper condition and with good maintenance and, as necessary, good repair. I want to enjoy flying without being concerned about the integrity of the machine.
That is my view of things.
Steve
