I have such an arrangement in my (Annex 2) bird, it comes in handy but it allows mistakes of all kinds. Also, it is difficult to find mating plugs of sturdy quality so that I would only do this with a smallish charger – mine does max. 5 amps and that is perfectly adequate for my 18 Ah battery.
I think that if your aircraft is found unairworthy, the route to making it airworthy again is likely to be more than just removing the offending mod. If that was all there was to it, every aircraft would be packed with illegal mods 
I think that if your aircraft is found unairworthy, the route to making it airworthy again is likely to be more than just removing the offending mod. If that was all there was to it, every aircraft would be packed with illegal mods
Making the aircraft legal was all that was required in every situation of that nature I’ve ever seen on an N-registered aircraft. However in my case, the A&P IA sees my little battery charger pigtail every year and can’t be bothered commenting on it.
If that was all there was to it, every aircraft would be packed with illegal mods …
One reason for not having them is that in case of an incident or accident (or ramp inspection in France…) you will not be able to quickly undo them but instead will need to explain a lot.
But honestly I cannot see the reason why you want to install that connector in the first place. No aircraft I have flown so far had their battery recharged between flights, even if these were many days or weeks apart. All times of the year, parked inside or outside. Not once was I unable to get the engine going.
I would say the biggest reason is not ramp inspection (unless it is a clued-up CAA official, nobody will notice it) but the company doing the next Annual is likely to refuse to sign it off, so the mod will be good only till the next Annual.
I know a German pilot who installed LED taxi+landing lights and he is trying hard to get a bit of paper to cover it, because he believes there is trouble down the road. And this guy knows the German system pretty well. LED lights are highly visible (no pun intended).
The need for charging would depend on how often you fly and how shagged the battery is. But I have never needed this sort of thing myself. But then i fly every week, usually, and have a Concorde (not Gill) battery.
… and how shagged the battery is.
I wonder how someone with this kind of battery (shagged enough so that it needs to be charged between flights) dares to fly anywhere? Even shutting down at his destination for coffee and sandwiches might be too long for going back home.
We had a CTEC charger installed when our aircraft (D-reg) was in maintenance this spring. Shop says they do this all the time, little effort and definitely a good investment.
It is quite commonly to find this just “done” also under EASA. It is possible to do this with a minor change, have done several of them. What in my opinion is important, especially where a longer cable run is neccessary, is too use not one, but two fuses, one at either end of the cable.
The one near the battery to protect the wiring the charger isn’t used, and a second one to protect the wiring in the aircraft when charger is used, the fuse at the battery end won’t help at this time. Proper protection is often overlooked in my opinion, while the cost is very low to do a good job.
I would suggest this with any charger.
I sometimes see even external power connectors (including starting capability) which have a live connection all the time, quite dangerouse in my opinon.
I learned a long time ago that for a vehicle/battery used weekly or less, keeping it on a maintenance charger all the time you’re not using it is a good idea: batteries last a long time if they’re never deep discharged in my experience. I just replaced one that I’d marked May 2005 at installation, so slightly over 10 years and it was still working reasonably well. I have eleven vehicles with batteries, so replacing them often is not something I want to do.
AGM batteries are good at resisting self discharge, but the best quality AGMs (Odyssey) are not widely available for certified aircraft. Just for certified Cubs and a few others, plus Experimentals where they are ubiquitous. I keep AGMs on a maintenance charger anyway and it works for me.
I sometimes see even external power connectors (including starting capability) which have a live connection all the time, quite dangerouse in my opinon.
How would you solve this, Jesse?
For example, certain airframe serial numbers of my aircraft type (not mine though) could be charged via the external power connector – the same one you would start the aircraft with. On mine, you have to apply power to the 3rd (small) pin on the connector for a relay to energise.
But I think a battery charging / conditioning connector can just be permanently connected.
