Tamarack Aerospace Restarts the Clock on Warranties

On July 10, the FAA approved an alternative method of compliance (AMOC) for all Active Winglet equipped Citation jets, which returned CJ1, CJ2, CJ3 and M2 aircraft to flying status. EASA regulators also recently resolved flight restriction issues in Europe created around the recent Emergency Airworthiness Directive (EAD) against Tamarack active winglet installations awaiting a final resolution to the EAD. The AMOC requires aircraft operators to comply with Service Bulletin 1480 prior to flight that calls for replacing or upgrading a small actuator on the trailing edge of the camber surface. Tamarack is providing the product improvements from SB 1480 free of charge to all customers.

Tamarack’s Atlas active winglets came under scrutiny following several upset incidents in which pilots struggled to maintain control of the aircraft. EASA issued its AD on April 19, stating, “Recently, occurrences have been reported in which Atlas appears to have malfunctioned, causing upset events where, in some cases, the pilots had difficulty to recover the aeroplane to safe flight.” In the United States, the FAA issued its corresponding AD on May 24. Company president Jacob Klinginsmith told Flying, “The company has sold three sets of active winglets in just the last month."

On a topic related to the active winglets, Klinginsmith said reports of his products being investigated by the NTSB following a Citation accident last November in Memphis, Indiana, are not accurate. “Our active winglets are not a focus of the investigation. The upset that caused authorities to look at Tamarack Aerospace winglets took place in April 2019,” fully six months after the Indiana crash.

In order to show the company's gratitude to customers caught by the grounding, Tamarack Aerospace is restarting the clock on Atlas equipment warranties, no matter when the aircraft was originally modified, providing an additional 24 months of coverage. Tamarack Aerospace filed for bankruptcy in early June.