[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 21 (Friday, January 31, 2020)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 5584-5587]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-01706]


 ========================================================================
 Proposed Rules
                                                 Federal Register
 ________________________________________________________________________
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 This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains notices to the public of 
 the proposed issuance of rules and regulations. The purpose of these 
 notices is to give interested persons an opportunity to participate in 
 the rule making prior to the adoption of the final rules.
 
 ========================================================================
 

  Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 21 / Friday, January 31, 2020 / 
Proposed Rules  

[[Page 5584]]



DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 39

[Docket No. FAA-2019-0760; Product Identifier 2019-NE-18-AD]
RIN 2120-AA64


Airworthiness Directives; Thales AVS France SAS Global 
Positioning System/Satellite Based Augmentation System Receivers

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The FAA proposes to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) 
for certain Thales AVS France SAS (Thales) Global Positioning System/
Satellite Based Augmentation System (GPS/SBAS) receivers installed on 
airplanes and helicopters. This proposed AD was prompted by reports 
that Thales GPS/SBAS receivers provided, under certain conditions, 
erroneous outputs on aircraft positions. This proposed AD would require 
the installation of a software update to the aircraft navigation 
database and insertion of a change to the applicable airplane flight 
manual (AFM). The FAA is proposing this AD to address the unsafe 
condition on these products.

DATES: The FAA must receive comments on this proposed AD by March 16, 
2020.

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 https://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: Sikorsky 
Aircraft Corporation, Customer Service Engineering, 124 Quarry Road, 
Trumbull, CT 06611; telephone 1-800-Winged-S or 203-416-4299; email: 
[email protected]; Thales AVS France SAS, 75-77 
Avenue Marcel Dassault, 33700 M[eacute]rignac--France, Tel: +33 (0)5 24 
44 77 40, www.thalesgroup.com; or ATR-GIE Avions de Transport 
R[eacute]gional, 1, All[eacute]e Pierre Nadot, 31712 Blagnac Cedex, 
France; telephone +33 (0) 5 62 21 62 21; fax +33 (0) 5 62 21 67 18; 
email aircraft.com">continued.airworthiness@atr-aircraft.com. You may view this 
service information at the FAA, Engine and Propeller Standards Branch, 
1200 District Avenue, Burlington, MA, 01803. For information on the 
availability of this material at the FAA, call 781-238-7759.

Examining the AD Docket

    You may examine the AD docket on the internet at https://www.regulations.gov by searching for and locating Docket No. FAA-2019-
0760; 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 mandatory continuing airworthiness information (MCAI), 
the regulatory evaluation, any comments received, and other 
information. The street address for Docket Operations is listed above. 
Comments will be available in the AD docket shortly after receipt.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kirk Gustafson, Aerospace Engineer, 
Boston ACO Branch, FAA, 1200 District Avenue, Burlington, MA 01803; 
phone: 781-238-7190; fax: 781-238-7199; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Comments Invited

    The FAA invites 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-2019-0760; 
Product Identifier 2019-NE-18-AD'' at the beginning of your comments. 
The FAA specifically invites comments on the overall regulatory, 
economic, environmental, and energy aspects of this NPRM. The FAA will 
consider all comments received by the closing date and may amend this 
NPRM because of those comments.
    Except for Confidential Business Information (CBI) as described in 
the following paragraph, and other information as described in 14 CFR 
11.35, the FAA will post all comments received, without change, to 
https://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information you 
provide. The FAA will also post a report summarizing each substantive 
verbal contact received about this proposed AD.

Confidential Business Information

    Confidential Business Information (CBI) is commercial or financial 
information that is both customarily and actually treated as private by 
its owner. Under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) (5 U.S.C. 552), 
CBI is exempt from public disclosure. If your comments responsive to 
this NPRM contain commercial or financial information that is 
customarily treated as private, that you actually treat as private, and 
that is relevant or responsive to this NPRM, it is important that you 
clearly designate the submitted comments as CBI. Please mark each page 
of your submission containing CBI as ``PROPIN.'' The FAA will treat 
such marked submissions as confidential under the FOIA, and they will 
not be placed in the public docket of this NPRM. Submissions containing 
CBI should be sent to Kirk Gustafson, Aerospace Engineer, Boston ACO 
Branch, FAA, 1200 District Avenue, Burlington, MA, 01803. Any 
commentary that the FAA receives which is not specifically designated 
as CBI will be placed in the public docket for this rulemaking.

Discussion

    The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), which is the 
Technical Agent for the Member States of the European Community, has 
issued EASA AD No. 2019-0004, dated January 11, 2019, corrected on 
January 17, 2019 (referred to after this as ``the MCAI''), to address 
an unsafe condition for the specified products. The MCAI states, in 
pertinent part:

    It has been determined that, in SBAS areas, in specific 
conditions of the GPS satellite constellation in line of sight to 
the aircraft, the Thales Topstar 200 LPV GPS/SBAS

[[Page 5585]]

receiver may provide an erroneous position on its outputs, which may 
not be detected by the integrity check. Depending on the aircraft 
installation, this error may not be noticed by the flight crew.
    This condition, if not corrected, could possibly compromise the 
safety margins when the receiver is used for Localizer Performance 
with Vertical guidance (LPV) and/or RNP-AR (Required Navigation 
Performance--Authorization Required) operations.
    For the reasons described above, this [EASA] AD requires removal 
from the navigation database of LPV procedures and all RNP-AR 
procedures in SBAS areas, listed in the SIL. To ensure a reset of 
all the GPS computations which may contribute to the erroneous GPS 
position output, this AD also requires, for certain ATR aeroplanes 
(see Note 1 of this [EASA] AD), amendment of the applicable AFM.

    You may obtain further information by examining the MCAI in the AD 
docket on the internet at https://www.regulations.gov by searching for 
and locating Docket No. FAA-2019-0760.

Related Service Information Under 1 CFR Part 51

    The FAA reviewed Task 31-61-00-800-802, ``2. FMS Database Update 
for Multifunction Display (MFD)'' of the Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation, 
AMM SA S76D-AMM-000, 31-61-00, dated November 30, 2017. This Task 
provides instructions for updating the MFD on affected Sikorsky 
aircraft.
    The FAA also reviewed ATR72 Aircraft Maintenance Manual (AMM) Job 
Instruction Cards, Doc. No. 45-11-00 LDG 10030-004, dated June 1, 2018, 
and ATR42-400/500 Series AMM Job Instruction Cards, Doc. No. 45-11-00 
LDG 10030-004, dated July 1, 2018. These service documents provide 
instructions on updating the navigation databases installed on affected 
ATR airplanes.
    The FAA also reviewed Thales Service Information Letter (SIL) Doc. 
No. THAV/SIL-1308, Issue 7, dated September 28, 2018. The SIL describes 
procedures to upload navigational database using Thales PMAT software 
on affected ATR airplanes.
    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.

FAA's Determination

    This product has been approved by EASA and is approved for 
operation in the United States. Pursuant to our bilateral agreement 
with the European Community, EASA has notified the FAA of the unsafe 
condition described in the MCAI and service information referenced 
above. The FAA is proposing this AD because the Agency evaluated all 
the relevant information provided by EASA and determined the unsafe 
condition described previously is likely to exist or develop in other 
products of the same type design.

Proposed AD Requirements

    This proposed AD would require installation of a software update to 
the aircraft navigation database and insertion of a change to the 
applicable AFM.

Costs of Compliance

    The FAA estimates that this proposed AD affects 45 Thales GPS/SBAS 
receivers installed on, but not limited to, GIE Avions de Transport 
R[eacute]gional model ATR42 airplanes and Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation 
model S-76D helicopters of U.S. registry.
    The FAA estimates the following costs to comply with this proposed 
AD:

                                                 Estimated Costs
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                     Cost per      Cost on U.S.
                Action                         Labor cost           Parts cost        product        operators
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Update navigation database for GPS/     1 work-hour x $85 per                 $0             $85          $3,825
 SBAS receiver.                          hour = $85.
Update AFM............................  3 work-hours x $85 per                 0             255          11,475
                                         hour = $255.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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.
    The FAA is 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 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 engines, propellers, and 
associated appliances to the Manager, Engine and Propeller Standards 
Branch, Policy and Innovation Division.

Regulatory Findings

    The FAA 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) Will not affect intrastate aviation in Alaska, and
    (3) 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.

[[Page 5586]]

Sec.  39.13  [Amended]

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

Thales AVS France SAS: Docket No. FAA-2019-0760; Product Identifier 
2019-NE-18-AD.

(a) Comments Due Date

    The FAA must receive comments by March 16, 2020.

(b) Affected ADs

    None.

(c) Applicability

    This AD applies to Thales AVS France SAS (Thales) Global 
Positioning System/Satellite Based Augmentation System (GPS/SBAS) 
receivers, Topstar 200 LPV, part numbers (P/Ns) C17149JA02 and 
C17149HA01. These GPS/SBAS receivers are installed on, but not 
limited to, ATR-GIE Avions de Transport R[eacute]gional (``ATR'') 
model ATR42 and ATR72 airplanes and Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation 
model S-76D helicopters, respectively.

(d) Subject

    Joint Aircraft System Component (JASC) Code 3457, Global 
Positioning System.

(e) Unsafe Condition

    This AD was prompted by reports that Thales GPS/SBAS receivers 
provided, under certain conditions, erroneous outputs on aircraft 
positions. The FAA is issuing this AD to prevent erroneous aircraft 
position outputs from the Thales GPS/SBAS receivers. The unsafe 
condition, if not addressed, could result in controlled flight into 
terrain and loss of the aircraft.

(f) Compliance

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

(g) Required Actions

    (1) For operators of affected ATR model ATR42 and ATR72 
airplanes:
    (i) Update the aircraft's navigation database within 30 days 
after the effective date of this AD using the software upload 
instructions, as applicable, in the following:
    (A) ATR72 Aircraft Maintenance Manual (AMM) Job Instruction 
Cards, Doc. No. 45-11-00 LDG 10030-004, dated June 1, 2018.
    (B) ATR42-400/500 Series AMM Job Instruction Cards, Doc. No. 45-
11-00 LDG 10030-004, dated July 1, 2018.
    (C) Thales Service Information Letter (SIL) Doc. No. THAV/SIL-
1308, Issue 7, dated September 28, 2018.
    (ii) [Reserved]
    (2) For operators of affected ATR model ATR42 and ATR72 
airplanes:
    (i) Within 30 days after the effective date of this AD, amend 
Section 1.2 ``Each Flight Checks'' of the pre-flight section in the 
applicable airplane flight manual by inserting the change shown in 
Figure 1 and Figure 2 to paragraph (g) of this AD.
    (ii) Before each flight, power cycle the Thales GPS/SBAS 
receiver unit.
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP31JA20.000

    (3) For operators of Sikorsky S-76D helicopters, within 30 days 
after the effective date of this AD, update the aircraft's 
navigation database using the instructions in TASK 31-61-00-800-802, 
``2. FMS Database Update for Multifunction Display (MFD)'' of the 
Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation, AMM SA S76D-AMM-000, 31-61-00, dated 
November 30, 2017.

(h) Alternative Methods of Compliance (AMOCs)

    (1) The Manager, Boston ACO 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 
manager of the Boston ACO Branch, send it to the attention of the 
person identified in paragraph (i)(1) of this AD.
    (2) 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.

[[Page 5587]]

(i) Related Information

    (1) For more information about this AD, contact Kirk Gustafson, 
Aerospace Engineer, Boston ACO Branch, FAA, 1200 District Avenue, 
Burlington, MA, 01803; phone: 781-238-7190; fax: 781-238-7199; 
email: [email protected].
    (2) Refer to European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) AD No. 
2019-0004, dated January 11, 2019 (corrected on January 17, 2019), 
for more information. You may examine the EASA AD in the AD docket 
on the internet at https://www.regulations.gov by searching for and 
locating it in Docket No. FAA-2019-0760.
    (3) For service information identified in this AD, contact 
Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation, Customer Service Engineering, 124 
Quarry Road, Trumbull, CT 06611; telephone 1-800-Winged-S or 203-
416-4299; email: [email protected]; Thales AVS 
France SAS, 75-77 Avenue Marcel Dassault, 33700 M[eacute]rignac--
France, Tel: +33 (0)5 24 44 77 40, www.thalesgroup.com; or ATR-GIE 
Avions de Transport R[eacute]gional, 1, All[eacute]e Pierre Nadot, 
31712 Blagnac Cedex, France; telephone +33 (0) 5 62 21 62 21; fax 
+33 (0) 5 62 21 67 18; email aircraft.com">continued.airworthiness@atr-aircraft.com. You may view this referenced service information at 
the FAA, Engine and Propeller Standards Branch, 1200 District 
Avenue, Burlington, MA, 01803. For information on the availability 
of this material at the FAA, call 781-238-7759.

    Issued in Burlington, Massachusetts, on January 27, 2020.
Robert J. Ganley,
Manager, Engine and Propeller Standards Branch, Aircraft Certification 
Service.
[FR Doc. 2020-01706 Filed 1-30-20; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4910-13-P