Professional Aircraft Accessories, a Greenwich AeroGroup company, recently designed for Bombardier CRJ200 aircraft a new Nose Wheel Steering module enclosure shell, dubbed the SteerClear, that significantly prevents the build-up of contaminants on the NWS module and increases the longevity of the interior components.

The SteerClear modification includes the addition of three sheet metal parts and a spill sleeve shaft housing.

“This steering module sits in the cockpit near the air return, resulting in lots of air, dust and contaminants shooting through this unit and sticking to the components,” said Professional Aircraft Accessories Production Engineer Brett Willenbacher. “SteerClear encloses the unit by 98-percent, significantly reducing the amount of debris that can gather on the unit. The enclosure also adds rigidity to the unit, with technical test documents showing better test times and readings.”

Willenbacher added that during an inspection, a sticky substance is sometimes found in the bushing and on the shaft of the Handwheel. It is believed that this is a contributing factor to the failure of the return-time test for the Modules. Professional Aircraft’s engineers redesigned the original shaft housing and created a spill sleeve that prevents liquids from traveling down inside the Tiller shaft.

No significant weight difference is incurred with SteerClear, and the functionality of the unit does not change.