[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 55 (Wednesday, March 21, 2018)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 12249-12251]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-05650]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 25

[Docket No. FAA-2018-0193; Special Conditions No. 25-718-SC]


Special Conditions: Bombardier Inc. Model BD-700-2A12 and BD-700-
2A13 Series Airplanes; Synthetic Vision System on Head-Up Display

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Final special conditions; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: These special conditions are issued for the Bombardier Inc. 
(Bombardier) Model BD-700-2A12 and BD-700-2A13 series airplanes. These 
airplanes will have a novel or unusual design feature when compared to 
the state of technology envisioned in the applicable airworthiness 
standards for transport-category airplanes. These airplanes incorporate 
a novel or unusual design feature associated with a synthetic vision 
system (SVS) that displays video imagery on the head-up display (HUD). 
The applicable airworthiness regulations do not contain adequate or 
appropriate safety standards for this design feature. These special 
conditions contain the additional safety standards that the 
Administrator considers necessary to establish a level of safety 
equivalent to that established by the existing airworthiness standards.

DATES: This action is effective on Bombardier on March 21, 2018. Send 
your comments by May 7, 2018.

ADDRESSES: Send comments identified by docket number FAA-2018-0193 
using any of the following methods:
     Federal eRegulations Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov/ and follow the online instructions for sending 
your comments electronically.
     Mail: Send comments to Docket Operations, M-30, U.S. 
Department of Transportation (DOT), 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Room 
W12-140, West Building Ground Floor, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
     Hand Delivery or Courier: Take comments to Docket 
Operations in Room W12-140 of the West Building Ground Floor at 1200 
New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday 
through Friday, except Federal holidays.
     Fax: Fax comments to Docket Operations at 202-493-2251.
    Privacy: The FAA will post all comments it receives, without 
change, to http://www.regulations.gov/, including any personal 
information the commenter provides. Using the search function of the 
docket website, anyone can find and read the electronic form of all 
comments received into any FAA docket, including the name of the 
individual sending the comment (or signing the comment for an 
association, business, labor union, etc.). DOT's complete Privacy Act 
Statement can be found in the Federal Register published on April 11, 
2000 (65 FR 19477-19478).
    Docket: Background documents or comments received may be read at 
http://www.regulations.gov/ at any time. Follow the online instructions 
for accessing the docket or go to Docket Operations in Room W12-140 of 
the West Building Ground Floor at 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, 
Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
except Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John Stuber, FAA, Airplane and Flight 
Crew Interface Section, AIR-671, Transport Standards Branch, Policy and 
Innovation Division, Aircraft Certification Service, 2200 South 216th 
Street, Des Moines, Washington 98198; telephone 206-231-3164; facsimile 
206-231-3398.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The substance of these special conditions 
has been subjected to the notice and comment period in several prior 
instances and has been derived without substantive change from the 
substance contained herein. Therefore, the FAA has determined that 
prior public notice and comment are unnecessary, and finds that, for 
the same reason, good cause exists for adopting these special 
conditions upon publication in the Federal Register.

Comments Invited

    We invite interested people to take part in this rulemaking by 
sending written comments, data, or views. The most helpful comments 
reference a specific portion of the special conditions, explain the 
reason for any recommended change, and include supporting data.
    We will consider all comments we receive by the closing date for 
comments. We may change these special conditions based on the comments 
we receive.

Background

    On May 30, 2012, Bombardier applied for an amendment to Type 
Certificate No. T00003NY to include the new Model BD-700-2A12 and BD-
700-2A13 series airplanes. The Bombardier Model BD-700-2A12 and BD-700-
2A13 series airplanes, which are derivatives of the Model BD-700 
airplane currently approved under Type Certificate No. T00003NY, are 
business jets with a maximum certified passenger capacity of 19. The 
maximum takeoff weight of the Model BD-700-2A12 airplane is 106,250 
lbs. and 104,800 lbs. for the Model BD-700-2A13 airplane.

Type Certification Basis

    Under the provisions of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations (14 
CFR) 21.101, Bombardier must show that the Model BD-700-2A12 and BD-
700-2A13 series airplanes meet the applicable provisions of the 
regulations listed in Type Certificate No. T00003NY, or the applicable 
regulations in effect on the date of application for the change except 
for earlier amendments as agreed upon by the FAA.
    If the Administrator finds that the applicable airworthiness 
regulations (i.e., 14 CFR part 25) do not contain adequate or 
appropriate safety standards for the Model BD-700-2A12 and BD-700-2A13 
series airplanes because of a novel or unusual design feature, special 
conditions are prescribed under the provisions of Sec.  21.16.
    Special conditions are initially applicable to the model for which 
they are issued. Should the type certificate for that model be amended 
later to include any other model that incorporates the same novel or 
unusual design feature, or should any other model already included on 
the same type certificate be modified to incorporate the same novel or 
unusual design feature, these special conditions would also apply to 
the other model under Sec.  21.101.
    In addition to the applicable airworthiness regulations and special 
conditions, the Bombardier Model BD-700-2A12 and BD-700-2A13 series 
airplanes must comply with the fuel-vent and exhaust-emission 
requirements of 14 CFR part 34, and the noise-certification 
requirements of 14 CFR part 36.
    The FAA issues special conditions, as defined in 14 CFR 11.19, in 
accordance with Sec.  11.38, and they become part of the type 
certification basis under Sec.  21.101.

Novel or Unusual Design Features

    The Model BD-700-2A12 and BD-700-2A13 series airplanes will

[[Page 12250]]

incorporate the following novel or unusual design features:
    Flight-deck design incorporating a synthetic vision system that 
displays video imagery on the HUD.

Discussion

    When the FAA began to evaluate the display of enhanced vision-
system (EVS) imagery on the HUD, significant potential to obscure the 
outside view became apparent, contrary to the requirements of Sec.  
25.773. This rule does not permit distortions and reflections in the 
pilot-compartment view that can interfere with normal duties, and the 
FAA did not write a rule in anticipation of such technology. The video 
image potentially interferes with the pilot's ability to see the 
natural scene in the center of the forward field of view.
    The FAA issued special conditions for such HUD/EVS installations to 
ensure that the level of safety required by Sec.  25.773 would be met 
even when the image might partially obscure the outside view. While 
many of the characteristics of EVS and SVS video differ, they have one 
thing in common: The potential for interference with the outside view 
through the airplane windshield. Although the pilot may be able to see 
around and through small, individual symbols on the HUD, the pilot may 
not be able to see around or through the image that fills the display 
without some interference of the outside view. Nevertheless, the SVS 
may be capable of meeting the required level of safety when considering 
the combined view of the image and the outside scene visible to the 
pilot through the image. It is essential that the pilot can use this 
combination of image and natural view of the outside scene as safely 
and effectively as is the pilot-compartment view currently available 
without the SVS image.
    Because Sec.  25.773, at the applicable amendment level, does not 
provide for any alternatives or considerations for a novel or unusual 
design feature, the FAA establishes safety requirements that assure an 
equivalent level of safety and effectiveness of the pilot-compartment 
view as intended by that rule. The purpose of these special conditions 
is to provide the unique pilot-compartment-view requirements for the 
SVS installation.
    These special conditions contain the additional safety standards 
that the Administrator considers necessary to establish a level of 
safety equivalent to that established by the existing airworthiness 
standards.

Applicability

    As discussed above, these special conditions are applicable to the 
Bombardier Model BD-700-2A12 and BD-700-2A13 series airplanes. Should 
Bombardier apply at a later date for a change to the type certificate 
to include another model incorporating the same novel or unusual design 
feature, these special conditions would apply to that model as well.

Conclusion

    This action affects only certain novel or unusual design features 
on one model series of airplanes. It is not a rule of general 
applicability.

List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 25

    Aircraft, Aviation safety, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements.

    The authority citation for these special conditions is as follows:

    Authority: 49 U.S.C. 106(f), 106(g), 40113, 44701, 44702, 44704.

The Special Conditions

    Accordingly, pursuant to the authority delegated to me by the 
Administrator, the following special conditions are issued as part of 
the type certification basis for Bombardier Model BD-700-2A12 and BD-
700-2A13 series airplanes:
    1. During any phase of flight in which it is to be used, the 
synthetic vision system (SVS) imagery on the head-up display (HUD) must 
not degrade flight safety or interfere with the effective use of 
outside visual references for required pilot tasks.
    2. To avoid unacceptable interference with the safe and effective 
use of the pilot-compartment view, the SVS must meet the following 
requirements:
    a. The SVS design must minimize unacceptable display 
characteristics or artifacts (e.g., terrain shadowing against a dark 
background, noise, ``burlap'' overlay) that obscure the desired image 
of the scene, impair the pilot's ability to detect and identify visual 
references, mask flight hazards, distract the pilot, or otherwise 
degrade task performance or safety.
    b. Control of SVS image-display brightness must be sufficiently 
effective in dynamically changing background (ambient) lighting 
conditions to avoid pilot distraction, impairment of the pilot's 
ability to detect and identify visual references, masking of flight 
hazards, or to otherwise degrade task performance or safety. If 
automatic control for image brightness is not provided, it must be 
shown that a single, manual setting is satisfactory for the range of 
lighting conditions encountered during a time-critical, high-workload 
phase of flight (e.g., low-visibility instrument approach).
    c. A readily accessible control must be provided that permits the 
pilot to immediately deactivate and reactivate display of the SVS image 
on demand, without having to remove hands from the flight controls and 
throttles.
    d. The SVS image on the HUD must not impair the pilot's use of 
guidance information, or degrade the presentation and pilot awareness 
of essential flight information displayed on the HUD, such as alerts, 
airspeed, attitude, altitude and direction, approach guidance, 
windshear guidance, traffic-alert and collision-avoidance system-
resolution advisories, or unusual-attitude recovery cues.
    e. The SVS image and the HUD symbols, which are spatially 
referenced to the pitch scale, outside view, and image, must be scaled 
and aligned (i.e., conformal) to the external scene. In addition, the 
SVS image and the HUD symbols--when considered singly or in 
combination--must not be misleading, cause pilot confusion, or increase 
workload. Airplane attitudes or cross-wind conditions may cause certain 
symbols (e.g., the zero-pitch line or flight-path vector) to reach 
field-of-view limits, such that they cannot be positioned conformally 
with the image and external scene. In such cases, these symbols may be 
displayed but with an altered appearance that makes the pilot aware 
that they are no longer displayed conformally (for example, 
``ghosting''). The combined use of symbology and runway image may not 
be used for path monitoring when path symbology is no longer conformal.
    f. A HUD system that displays SVS images must, if previously 
certified, continue to meet all of the requirements of the original 
approval.
    3. The safety and performance of the pilot tasks associated with 
the use of the pilot-compartment view must not be degraded by the 
display of the SVS image. These tasks include the following:
    a. Detection, and accurate identification and maneuvering as 
necessary, to avoid traffic, terrain, obstacles, and other flight 
hazards.
    b. Accurate identification and utilization of visual references 
required for every task relevant to the phase of flight.
    4. Appropriate limitations must be stated in the Operating 
Limitations section of the Airplane Flight Manual to prohibit the use 
of the SVS for functions that have not been found to be acceptable.


[[Page 12251]]


    Issued in Des Moines, Washington.
Victor Wicklund,
Manager, Transport Standards Branch, Policy and Innovation Division, 
Aircraft Certification Service.
[FR Doc. 2018-05650 Filed 3-20-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-13-P