[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 108 (Tuesday, June 6, 2006)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 32491-32492]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-8710]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 39

[Docket No. 2001-NM-110-AD]
RIN 2120-AA64


Airworthiness Directives; Saab Model SAAB SF340A and SAAB 340B 
Series Airplanes

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration, DOT.

ACTION: Proposed rule; withdrawal.

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SUMMARY: This action withdraws a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) 
that proposed a new airworthiness directive (AD), applicable to all 
Saab Model SAAB SF340A and SAAB 340B series airplanes. That action 
would have required modifying or replacing flight data recorders (FDR) 
of a certain model. Since the issuance of the NPRM, the Federal 
Aviation Administration (FAA) has received new data that the identified 
unsafe condition has been corrected on all airplanes that would have 
been subject to the NPRM. Accordingly, the proposed rule is withdrawn.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dan Rodina, Aerospace Engineer, 
International Branch, ANM-116, Transport Airplane Directorate, FAA, 
1601 Lind Avenue, SW., Renton, Washington 98055-4056; telephone (425) 
227-2125; fax (425) 227-1149.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: A proposal to amend part 39 of the Federal 
Aviation Regulations (14 CFR part 39) to add a new airworthiness 
directive (AD), applicable to all Saab Model SAAB SF340A and SAAB 340B 
series airplanes, was published in the Federal Register as a Notice of 
Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on August 17, 2001 (66 FR 43128). The 
proposed rule would have required modifying or replacing flight data 
recorders (FDR) of a certain model. That action resulted from reports 
of a number of incidents in which flight data have been lost from the 
FDR.
    The proposed actions were intended to prevent loss of flight data 
from the FDR, which could hamper discovery of the cause of an accident, 
preventing the Federal Aviation Administration from developing and 
mandating actions to prevent additional accidents caused by the same 
unsafe condition.

Actions That Occurred Since the NPRM Was Issued

    Since the issuance of that NPRM, the FDR manufacturer, L-3 
Communications Corporation, notified the FAA that the only affected 
operator flying in the U.S. has accomplished the action proposed in the 
NPRM, and no unsafe condition exists or is likely to exist. In the 
event that a Saab Model SAAB-Fairchild SF340A (SAAB/SF340A), or SAAB 
340B airplane is imported into the U.S., the FAA issued a Special 
Airworthiness Information Bulletin (NM-06-40, April 14, 2006) to alert 
U.S. operators of the need to install the replacement FDR.

Explanation of Change to Model Designation

    We have revised the model reference in the above paragraph to 
identify model designations as published in the most recent type 
certificate data sheet for the affected models.

FAA's Conclusions

    Upon further consideration, the FAA has determined that the actions 
that would have been required by the NPRM have already been done on all 
affected airplanes, and the identified unsafe condition has been 
corrected. Accordingly, the proposed rule is hereby withdrawn.
    Withdrawal of this NPRM constitutes only such action, and does not 
preclude the agency from issuing another action in the future, nor does 
it commit the agency to any course of action in the future.

Regulatory Impact

    Since this action only withdraws a notice of proposed rulemaking, 
it is neither a proposed nor a final rule and therefore is not covered 
under Executive Order 12866, the Regulatory Flexibility Act, or DOT 
Regulatory Policies and Procedures (44 FR 11034, February 26, 1979).

List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 39

    Air transportation, Aircraft, Aviation safety, Safety.

[[Page 32492]]

The Withdrawal

    Accordingly, the notice of proposed rulemaking, Docket 2001-NM-110-
AD, published in the Federal Register on August 17, 2001 (66 FR 43128), 
is withdrawn.

    Issued in Renton, Washington, on May 26, 2006.
Ali Bahrami,
Manager, Transport Airplane Directorate, Aircraft Certification 
Service.
 [FR Doc. E6-8710 Filed 6-5-06; 8:45 am]
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