Aircraft Wheel & Bearing Protectors with Integrated Internal Protection Protrusion and Fastening Member Guide

An aircraft wheel hub cover configured to be removably affixed on an aircraft wheel having a rim and a hub with a support portion of the hub that extends radially inward from the rim in the radially middle portion of the rim with an at least one bearing race groove thereon, an at least one bearing race located in an at least one bearing race groove, and an axle void passing through the hub on the rim, comprising:

• at least two wheel hub cover portions;
• a first wheel hub cover portion of the at least two wheel hub cover portions on a first side of said wheel;
• a second wheel hub cover portion of the at least two wheel hub cover portions on an opposed side of the wheel relative to the first;
• an at least one integral protection protrusion portion extending from said first wheel hub cover portion of the at least two wheel hub cover portions, with the at least one integral protection protrusion engaging said support portion of the hub with said at least one bearing race groove thereon on at least one side of said wheel and penetrating and extending into the axle void from the first side to the second side of said wheel, wherein the at least one integral protection protrusion extending from the first of the least two wheel hub cover portions retains said at least one bearing race in the at least one bearing race groove and engages the second cover portion of the at least two cover portions such that the at least one integral protection protrusion releasably couples the first wheel hub cover portion to the opposed second wheel hub cover portion and thereby releasably affixes the wheel cover to the aircraft wheel.

A method of using an aircraft wheel cover such that an at least one protective protrusion is engaged and retains an at least one bearing race in a support portion of the wheel on an aircraft wheel, comprising:

• aligning a first of an at least two wheel cover portions, the first wheel cover portion having an at least one protrusion thereon, the at least one protrusion being aligned with an axle void;
• passing the at least one protective protrusion into the axle void in the aircraft wheel, the aircraft wheel having aircraft wheel having a rim and a hub with the support portion of the hub that extends radially inward from the rim in the radially middle portion of the rim with an at least one bearing race groove thereon, the at least one protrusion thereon being thereby engaged with the aircraft wheel such that the protrusion extends to and engages a second wheel cover portion of the at least two cover portions through the axle void in the hub;
• engaging an at least one coupling portion of the at least one protrusion to releasably affix the first cover portion of the at least two cover portions to the second cover portion of the at least two cover portions;
• and
• securing and retaining the at least one bearing race in the support portion of the wheel while the aircraft wheel cover is releasably affixed.