Cessna Fuel Bladders

Worst Job in General Aviation, January 15th, 2019
The worst job in general aviation that I encountered, besides float
repair bucking keel rivets in a small aluminum float compartment
with the noise of the rivet gun and fumes of the float sealant; was
replacing the fuel bladders in high wing Cessnas.
I’ll attach some photos.
Some idiot engineer at Cessna in Wichita, Kansas decided that this
huge fuel bladder tank could be removed and inserted into the wing
via two tiny access holes. (This is where one fuels up the plane.)
The bladder tank had to be removed and inserted through a hole in
the upper wing no bigger than your fist.
Once I’d damn near broken my back and fingers removing the old
smelly fuel tank through the tiny fuel filling holes, I’d warm up the
new tank with a heater to make it more pliable.
Still, it was a struggle to shove this huge bladder tank into the wing
and attach it to the wing. Cessna had these snaps in the wing that
I’d have to find with my fingers and press the bladder tank snaps
against to hold it against the wing.
It was a stretch to say the least.
Then there was the hooking up of the fuel vents and outflow
connections.
It was a horrible, horrible job.
Ahh, and don’t forget the connection for the fuel gauge. That was
always fun to install.
I pity the fool who is replacing these old Cessna fuel bladders today.
TJM