Puzzling Onan Air Filter on 1995 Land Yacht

[scotta]

I want to replace the air filter on my Onan generator but I can't figure out how to remove it. There is a plate that interferes with pulling the housing sideways far enough to easily remove the filter. I am leery to twist the housing so that it would face upwards where I have room to remove the filter because the Onan manual says that there is a tube connected to the air cleaner housing that can be damaged if it is mishandled. I can't believe they would design it so that I have to remove the entire side plate that separates the generator compartment. I have a 1995 Land Yacht and wondered if anyone has had a similar experience and resolved it?

Thanks in advance for your help.