Theseus' Engine

Warrior 481's newly overhauled engine made its homecoming to the Williamson Sodus Airport on June 8, arriving home for the first time without an airplane wrapped around it. Ray brought the palletized power plant to Sodus in his van and set about reattaching the baffles, alternator, starter, primer lines, Reiff pre heater, and other accessories not needed by the folks at Penn Yan.

It almost seemed a shame to ensconce the pristine engine in the dirty (if functional) baffles that it wore for many years prior. With the engine ready for mounting on the airframe, completion of the project will simply be a matter of when Ray has time for the trek to Dansville.

I was reminded of an ages-old philosophical thought experiment known as the Ship of Theseus, a concept generally attributed to Plutarch. (Or, minimally, Plutarch gets credit for having been the first to write it down.) The basic idea concerns the ongoing replacement of rotting timbers of a ship. As replacement progresses from the original ship with all of its original components to a vessel with 100% of those components replaced, is it still the same ship? If not, when did it become a new or different ship? With replacement of the first plank? When the final original component was removed?

The thought experiment actually becomes more deeply interesting when applied to human beings as we age and grow, as our cells die and are recycled into new cells, and as our opinions and appearance change over time. Memory and sentience are significant complicating factors. For aircraft and engines, the FAA legislates a simple answer to this philosophical conundrum with unambiguous bureaucratic efficacy: if it has the same data plate, then it is the same engine. Period. Even if the whole thing is essentially new.

And so, Warrior 481's engine, rebuilt almost entirely from new or different components, is considered to be the same engine by definition. I suspect that the FAA has no appreciation for uncertainty-ridden thought experiments.

Obviously, I am most excited about the addition of the SureFly Ignition Module replacing the left "magnetosaurus". Time will tell how much Warrior 481's performance will be affected.

In the meantime, the rest of Warrior 481 waits patiently for new life in Dansville, entertaining the birds and generating a modest income for the airport in parking fees.