[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 165 (Friday, August 24, 2018)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 42812-42815]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-18147]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 39

[Docket No. FAA-2018-0759; Product Identifier 2018-NM-055-AD]
RIN 2120-AA64


Airworthiness Directives; Airbus SAS Airplanes

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).

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SUMMARY: We propose to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) for 
certain Airbus SAS Model A330-200 series airplanes; Model A330-200 
Freighter series airplanes; and Model A330-300 series airplanes. This 
proposed AD was prompted by revisions to certain airworthiness 
limitation item (ALI) documents, which specify more restrictive 
instructions and/or airworthiness limitations. This proposed AD would 
require revising the maintenance or inspection program, as applicable, 
to incorporate new or more restrictive instructions and/or 
airworthiness limitations. We are proposing this AD to address the 
unsafe condition on these products.

DATES: We must receive comments on this proposed AD by October 9, 2018.

ADDRESSES: You may send comments, using the procedures found in 14 CFR 
11.43 and 11.45, by any of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
     Fax: 202-493-2251.
     Mail: U.S. Department of Transportation, Docket 
Operations, M-30, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New 
Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590.
     Hand Delivery: Deliver to Mail address above between 9 
a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
    For service information identified in this NPRM, contact Airbus 
SAS, Airworthiness Office--EAL, Rond-Point Emile Dewoitine No: 2, 31700 
Blagnac Cedex, France; telephone +33 5 61 93 36 96; fax +33 5 61 93 45 
80; email [email protected]; internet http://www.airbus.com. You may view this service information at the FAA, 
Transport Standards Branch, 2200 South 216th St., Des Moines, WA. For 
information on the availability of this material at the FAA, call 206-
231-3195.

Examining the AD Docket

    You may examine the AD docket on the internet at http://www.regulations.gov by searching for and locating Docket No. FAA-2018-
0759; or in person at Docket Operations between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., 
Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. The AD docket contains 
this NPRM, the regulatory evaluation, any comments received, and other 
information. The street address for Docket Operations (phone: 800-647-
5527) is in the ADDRESSES section. Comments will be available in the AD 
docket shortly after receipt.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Vladimir Ulyanov, Aerospace Engineer,

[[Page 42813]]

International Section, Transport Standards Branch, FAA, 2200 South 
216th St., Des Moines, WA 98198; telephone and fax 206-231-3229.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Comments Invited

    We invite you to send any written relevant data, views, or 
arguments about this proposal. Send your comments to an address listed 
under the ADDRESSES section. Include ``Docket No. FAA-2018-0759; 
Product Identifier 2018-NM-055-AD'' at the beginning of your comments. 
We specifically invite comments on the overall regulatory, economic, 
environmental, and energy aspects of this NPRM. We will consider all 
comments received by the closing date and may amend this NPRM because 
of those comments.
    We will post all comments we receive, without change, to http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information you provide. We 
will also post a report summarizing each substantive verbal contact we 
receive about this NPRM.

Discussion

    The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), which is the Technical 
Agent for the Member States of the European Union, has issued EASA 
Airworthiness Directive 2018-0034, dated February 5, 2018 (referred to 
after this as the Mandatory Continuing Airworthiness Information, or 
``the MCAI''), to correct an unsafe condition for Airbus SAS Model 
A330-200 series airplanes; Model A330-200 Freighter series airplanes; 
and Model A330-300 series airplanes. The MCAI states:

    The airworthiness limitations for Airbus A330 and A340 
aeroplanes, which are approved by EASA, are currently defined and 
published in the A330 and A340 ALS document(s). The Safe Life 
Airworthiness Limitation Items are specified in ALS Part 1. These 
instructions have been identified as mandatory for continued 
airworthiness.
    Failure to accomplish these instructions could result in an 
unsafe condition.
    EASA previously issued [EASA] AD 2014-0009 [which corresponds to 
FAA AD 2017-10-24, Amendment 39-18898 (82 FR 24035, May 25, 2017) 
(``AD 2017-10-24'')] to require the implementation of the 
instructions and airworthiness limitations as specified in Airbus 
A330 and A340 ALS Part 1 documents at Revision 07.
    Since that [EASA] AD was issued, improvement of safe life 
component selection and life extension campaigns resulted in life 
limitations changes, among others new or more restrictive life 
limitations, approved by EASA. Consequently, Airbus successively 
issued Revision 08 and Revision 09 of the A330 and A340 ALS Part 1, 
compiling all ALS Part 1 changes approved since previous Revision 
07.
    In addition, Airbus published Variation 9.2 to remove from ALS 
Part 1 some life limits connected to a deficiency in the fatigue 
performance of 300M high strength steel used in forgings. These life 
limits, applicable only for a specific batch of parts, are required 
by EASA AD 2017-0185.
    For the reason described above, this [EASA] AD retains the 
requirements of EASA AD 2014-0009, which is superseded, and requires 
accomplishment of the actions specified in the applicable ALS.

    The unsafe condition is fatigue cracking, accidental damage, or 
corrosion in certain principle structural elements, and possible 
failure of certain life limited parts, which could result in reduced 
structural integrity of the airplane. You may examine the MCAI in the 
AD docket on the internet at http://www.regulations.gov by searching 
for and locating Docket No. FAA-2018-0759.

Relationship Between Proposed AD and AD 2017-10-24

    This NPRM does not propose to supersede AD 2017-10-24. Rather, we 
have determined that a stand-alone AD would be more appropriate to 
address the changes in the MCAI. This NPRM would require revising the 
maintenance or inspection program, as applicable, to incorporate new or 
more restrictive instructions and/or airworthiness limitations. 
Accomplishment of the proposed actions would then terminate all 
requirements of AD 2017-10-24.

Related Service Information Under 1 CFR Part 51

    Airbus SAS has issued A330 Airworthiness Limitations Section (ALS) 
Part 1, Safe Life Airworthiness Limitation Items (SL-ALI), Revision 09, 
dated September 18, 2017. This service information describes SL-ALI for 
the landing gear.
    Airbus SAS has also issued A330 ALS Part 1, SL-ALI, Variation 9.2, 
dated November 28, 2017, and A330 ALS Part 1, SL-ALI, Variation 9.3, 
dated November 29, 2017. This service information describes revised 
life limits for certain parts.
    This service information is reasonably available because the 
interested parties have access to it through their normal course of 
business or by the means identified in the ADDRESSES section.

Differences Between this Proposed AD and the MCAI

    This proposed AD does not include the Model A340 airplanes that are 
specified in the MCAI. Instead, we have added the MCAI to the required 
airworthiness actions list (RAAL) for the Model A340 airplanes.

FAA's Determination

    This product has been approved by the aviation authority of another 
country, and is approved for operation in the United States. Pursuant 
to our bilateral agreement with the State of Design Authority, we have 
been notified of the unsafe condition described in the MCAI and service 
information referenced above. We are proposing this AD because we 
evaluated all the relevant information and determined the unsafe 
condition described previously is likely to exist or develop on other 
products of the same type design.

Proposed AD Requirements

    This proposed AD would require revising the maintenance or 
inspection program, as applicable, to incorporate new, more restrictive 
instructions and/or airworthiness limitation requirements, except as 
discussed under ``Differences Between this Proposed AD and the MCAI.''
    This proposed AD would require revisions to certain operator 
maintenance documents to include new actions (e.g., inspections). 
Compliance with these actions is required by 14 CFR 91.403(c). For 
airplanes that have been previously modified, altered, or repaired in 
the areas addressed by this proposed AD, the operator may not be able 
to accomplish the actions described in the revisions. In this 
situation, to comply with 14 CFR 91.403(c), the operator must request 
approval for an alternative method of compliance according to paragraph 
(j)(1) of this proposed AD. The request should include a description of 
changes to the required inspections that will ensure the continued 
operational safety of the airplane.

Airworthiness Limitations Based on Type Design

    The FAA recently became aware of an issue related to the 
applicability of ADs that require incorporation of an ALS revision into 
an operator's maintenance or inspection program.
    Typically, when these types of ADs are issued by civil aviation 
authorities of other countries, they apply to all airplanes covered 
under an identified type certificate (TC). The corresponding FAA AD 
typically retains applicability to all of those airplanes.
    In addition, U.S. operators must operate their airplanes in an 
airworthy condition, in accordance with 14 CFR 91.7(a). Included in 
this obligation is the requirement to perform any maintenance or 
inspections specified in the ALS, and in accordance with the

[[Page 42814]]

ALS as specified in 14 CFR 43.16 and 91.403(c), unless an alternative 
has been approved by the FAA.
    When a type certificate is issued for a type design, the specific 
ALS, including revisions, is a part of that type design, as specified 
in 14 CFR 21.31(c).
    The sum effect of these operational and maintenance requirements is 
an obligation to comply with the ALS defined in the type design 
referenced in the manufacturer's conformity statement. This obligation 
may introduce a conflict with an AD that requires a specific ALS 
revision if new airplanes are delivered with a later revision as part 
of their type design.
    To address this conflict, the FAA has approved alternative methods 
of compliance (AMOCs) that allow operators to incorporate the most 
recent ALS revision into their maintenance/inspection programs, in lieu 
of the ALS revision required by the AD. This eliminates the conflict 
and enables the operator to comply with both the AD and the type 
design.
    However, compliance with AMOCs is normally optional, and we 
recently became aware that some operators choose to retain the AD-
mandated ALS revision in their fleet-wide maintenance/inspection 
programs, including those for new airplanes delivered with later ALS 
revisions, to help standardize the maintenance of the fleet. To ensure 
that operators comply with the applicable ALS revision for newly 
delivered airplanes containing a later revision than that specified in 
an AD, we plan to limit the applicability of ADs that mandate ALS 
revisions to those airplanes that are subject to an earlier revision of 
the ALS, either as part of the type design or as mandated by an earlier 
AD.
    This proposed AD therefore would apply to Airbus SAS Model A330-200 
series airplanes; Model A330-200 Freighter series airplanes; and Model 
A330-300 series airplanes with an original certificate of airworthiness 
or original export certificate of airworthiness that was issued on or 
before the date of the ALS revision identified in this proposed AD. 
Operators of airplanes with an original certificate of airworthiness or 
original export certificate of airworthiness issued after that date 
must comply with the airworthiness limitations specified as part of the 
approved type design and referenced on the type certificate data sheet.

Costs of Compliance

    We estimate that this proposed AD affects 105 airplanes of U.S. 
registry. We estimate the following costs to comply with this proposed 
AD:
    We have determined that revising the maintenance or inspection 
program takes an average of 90 work-hours per operator, although we 
recognize that this number may vary from operator to operator. In the 
past, we have estimated that this action takes 1 work-hour per 
airplane. Since operators incorporate maintenance or inspection program 
changes for their affected fleet(s), we have determined that a per-
operator estimate is more accurate than a per-airplane estimate. 
Therefore, we estimate the total cost per operator to be $7,650 (90 
work-hours x $85 per work-hour).

Authority for This Rulemaking

    Title 49 of the United States Code specifies the FAA's authority to 
issue rules on aviation safety. Subtitle I, section 106, describes the 
authority of the FAA Administrator. Subtitle VII: Aviation Programs, 
describes in more detail the scope of the Agency's authority.
    We are issuing this rulemaking under the authority described in 
Subtitle VII, Part A, Subpart III, Section 44701: ``General 
requirements.'' Under that section, Congress charges the FAA with 
promoting safe flight of civil aircraft in air commerce by prescribing 
regulations for practices, methods, and procedures the Administrator 
finds necessary for safety in air commerce. This regulation is within 
the scope of that authority because it addresses an unsafe condition 
that is likely to exist or develop on products identified in this 
rulemaking action.
    This proposed AD is issued in accordance with authority delegated 
by the Executive Director, Aircraft Certification Service, as 
authorized by FAA Order 8000.51C. In accordance with that order, 
issuance of ADs is normally a function of the Compliance and 
Airworthiness Division, but during this transition period, the 
Executive Director has delegated the authority to issue ADs applicable 
to transport category airplanes to the Director of the System Oversight 
Division.

Regulatory Findings

    We determined that this proposed AD would not have federalism 
implications under Executive Order 13132. This proposed AD would not 
have a substantial direct effect on the States, on the relationship 
between the national Government and the States, or on the distribution 
of power and responsibilities among the various levels of government.
    For the reasons discussed above, I certify this proposed 
regulation:
    1. Is not a ``significant regulatory action'' under Executive Order 
12866;
    2. Is not a ``significant rule'' under the DOT Regulatory Policies 
and Procedures (44 FR 11034, February 26, 1979);
    3. Will not affect intrastate aviation in Alaska; and
    4. Will not have a significant economic impact, positive or 
negative, on a substantial number of small entities under the criteria 
of the Regulatory Flexibility Act.

List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 39

    Air transportation, Aircraft, Aviation safety, Incorporation by 
reference, Safety.

The Proposed Amendment

    Accordingly, under the authority delegated to me by the 
Administrator, the FAA proposes to amend 14 CFR part 39 as follows:

PART 39--AIRWORTHINESS DIRECTIVES

0
1. The authority citation for part 39 continues to read as follows:

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


Sec.  39.13  [Amended]

0
2. The FAA amends Sec.  39.13 by adding the following new airworthiness 
directive (AD):

Airbus SAS: Docket No. FAA-2018-0759; Product Identifier 2018-NM-
055-AD.

(a) Comments Due Date

    We must receive comments by October 9, 2018.

(b) Affected ADs

    This AD affects AD 2017-10-24, Amendment 39-18898 (82 FR 24035, 
May 25, 2017) (``AD 2017-10-24'').

(c) Applicability

    This AD applies to the Airbus SAS airplanes identified in 
paragraphs (c)(1), (c)(2), and (c)(3) of this AD, certificated in 
any category, with an original certificate of airworthiness or an 
original export certificate of airworthiness issued on or before 
November 29, 2017.
    (1) Airbus SAS Model A330-201, -202, -203, -223, and -243 
airplanes.
    (2) Airbus SAS Model A330-223F and -243F airplanes.
    (3) Airbus SAS Model A330-301, -302, -303, -321, -322, -323, -
341, -342, and -343 airplanes.

(d) Subject

    Air Transport Association (ATA) of America Code 05, Time Limits/
Maintenance Checks.

(e) Reason

    This AD was prompted by revisions to certain airworthiness 
limitation item (ALI)

[[Page 42815]]

documents, which specify more restrictive instructions and/or 
airworthiness limitations. We are issuing this AD to address fatigue 
cracking, accidental damage, or corrosion in principal structural 
elements, and possible failure of certain life limited parts, which 
could result in reduced structural integrity of the airplane.

(f) Compliance

    Comply with this AD within the compliance times specified, 
unless already done.

(g) Revision of Maintenance or Inspection Program

    Within 90 days after the effective date of this AD, revise the 
maintenance or inspection program, as applicable, to incorporate the 
information specified in the service information identified in 
paragraphs (g)(1), (g)(2), and (g)(3) of this AD. The initial 
compliance times for accomplishing the tasks are at the applicable 
times specified in the service information identified in paragraphs 
(g)(1), (g)(2), and (g)(3) of this AD, or within 90 days after the 
effective date of this AD, whichever occurs later.
    (1) Airbus SAS A330 Airworthiness Limitations Section (ALS) Part 
1, Safe Life Airworthiness Limitation Items (SL-ALI), Revision 09, 
dated September 18, 2017.
    (2) Airbus SAS A330 ALS Part 1, SL-ALI, Variation 9.2, dated 
November 28, 2017.
    (3) Airbus SAS A330 ALS Part 1, SL-ALI, Variation 9.3, dated 
November 29, 2017.

(h) Terminating Actions for AD 2017-10-24

    Accomplishing the actions required by paragraph (g) of this AD 
terminates all requirements of AD 2017-10-24.

(i) No Alternative Actions or Intervals

    After the maintenance or inspection program, as applicable, has 
been revised as required by paragraph (g) of this AD, no alternative 
actions (e.g., inspections) or intervals may be used unless the 
actions or intervals are approved as an alternative method of 
compliance (AMOC) in accordance with the procedures specified in 
paragraph (j)(1) of this AD.

(j) Other FAA AD Provisions

    The following provisions also apply to this AD:
    (1) Alternative Methods of Compliance (AMOCs): The Manager, 
International Section, Transport Standards Branch, FAA, has the 
authority to approve AMOCs for this AD, if requested using the 
procedures found in 14 CFR 39.19. In accordance with 14 CFR 39.19, 
send your request to your principal inspector or local Flight 
Standards District Office, as appropriate. If sending information 
directly to the International Section, send it to the attention of 
the person identified in paragraph (k)(2) of this AD. Information 
may be emailed to: [email protected].
    (i) Before using any approved AMOC, notify your appropriate 
principal inspector, or lacking a principal inspector, the manager 
of the local flight standards district office/certificate holding 
district office.
    (ii) AMOCs approved previously for AD 2017-10-24 are not 
approved as AMOCs for this AD.
    (2) Contacting the Manufacturer: For any requirement in this AD 
to obtain corrective actions from a manufacturer, the action must be 
accomplished using a method approved by the Manager, International 
Section, Transport Standards Branch, FAA; or the European Aviation 
Safety Agency (EASA); or Airbus SAS's EASA Design Organization 
Approval (DOA). If approved by the DOA, the approval must include 
the DOA-authorized signature.

(k) Related Information

    (1) Refer to Mandatory Continuing Airworthiness Information 
(MCAI) EASA Airworthiness Directive 2018-0034, dated February 5, 
2018, for related information. This MCAI may be found in the AD 
docket on the internet at http://www.regulations.gov by searching 
for and locating Docket No. FAA-2018-0759.
    (2) For more information about this AD, contact Vladimir 
Ulyanov, Aerospace Engineer, International Section, Transport 
Standards Branch, FAA, 2200 South 216th St., Des Moines, WA 98198; 
telephone and fax 206-231-3229.
    (3) For service information identified in this AD, contact 
Airbus SAS, Airworthiness Office--EAL, Rond-Point Emile Dewoitine 
No: 2, 31700 Blagnac Cedex, France; telephone +33 5 61 93 36 96; fax 
+33 5 61 93 45 80; email [email protected]; 
internet http://www.airbus.com. You may view this service 
information at the FAA, Transport Standards Branch, 2200 South 216th 
St., Des Moines, WA. For information on the availability of this 
material at the FAA, call 206-231-3195.

    Issued in Des Moines, Washington, on August 16, 2018.
Michael Kaszycki,
Acting Director, System Oversight Division, Aircraft Certification 
Service.
[FR Doc. 2018-18147 Filed 8-23-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4910-13-P