By Maj. Steve Hagerty
AV-8 Program Officer

Kevin Lee Henry, a sheet metal artisan working in the T/AV-8B Upgrade Program, has been awarded the Naval Air Depot Safety Professional of the Month Award for March. During installation of a KT 589 center fuel tank modification kit on a T/AV-8B Harrier, Henry noticed that the rivets he was installing into the airframe entered the frame with less resistance than normally encountered during similar aircraft repairs. The British SP rivets specified by the installation drawing appeared to be made of too soft a material and were inserting too easily into the frame. Approximately 300 rivets had been installed on the aircraft. Henry reported his concerns to his work leader and supervisor and engineers were summoned to investigate the problem.

Engineers conducted various material lab tests on the rivets and concluded that the rivets had not been heat-treated. Further investigation with the manufacturer revealed that prior to installation, rivets were to be heat-treated and installed as icebox rivets. The requirements for heat-treating the
rivets was not specified in the installation drawings nor in the contract specification that lists the U.S. rivet equivalents.

As a result of Henry’s discovery, engineering ordered the removal of the installed rivets and directed all SP rivets be replaced with their corresponding MS equivalent as specified by Temporary Engineering Instruction L90004. The Local Engineering Specification will be updated prior to release to include the changes addressed in the TEI.

Henry’s actions broke the chain of events that were leading to a serious defect in the airframe. His keen eye for detail and previous experience helped to stop a potential mishap. By speaking up and voicing his concerns to his work leader and supervisors, Henry stopped a series of events that could have ended in the loss of life and aircraft.

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Cutline: Kevin Lee Henry, sheet metal artisan, works in the tight space of the nose wheel well of a Harrier. Henry’s sharp eye for detail nabbed him the depot’s March safety professional award. (Photo by Mike Barton)