[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 8 (Wednesday, January 12, 2022)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 1662-1663]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-00390]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Aviation Administration
14 CFR Part 25
[Docket No. FAA-2021-0484; Special Conditions No. 25-794-SC]
Special Conditions: Learjet, Inc.; Electronic System Security
Protection From Unauthorized External Access
AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Department of
Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Final special conditions; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: These special conditions are issued for a supplemental type
certificate on certain transport category airplanes. These airplanes,
as modified by Learjet, Inc. (Learjet), will have a novel or unusual
design feature when compared to the state of technology envisioned in
the airworthiness standards for transport-category airplanes. This
design feature is the installation of a system that allows connection
to airplane electronics and networks, and access from aircraft external
sources (e.g., operator networks, wireless devices, internet
connectivity, service provider satellite communications, electronic
flight bags, etc.) to the previously isolated airplane electronic
assets (networks, systems, and databases). 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 Learjet on January 12, 2022. Send
comments on or before February 28, 2022.
ADDRESSES: Send comments identified by Docket No. FAA-2021-0484 using
any of the following methods:
Federal eRegulations Portal: Go to https://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: Except for Confidential Business Information (CBI) as
described in the following paragraph, and other information as
described in title 14, Code of Federal Regulations (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 these special conditions.
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 these special
conditions contain commercial or financial information that is
customarily treated as private, that you actually treat as private, and
that is relevant or responsive to these special conditions, 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 the indicated comments will not be placed in the public
docket of these special conditions. Send submissions containing CBI to
the person indicated in the Contact section below. Comments the FAA
receives, which are not specifically designated as CBI, will be placed
in the public docket for this rulemaking.
Docket: Background documents or comments received may be read at
https://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: Varun Khanna, Aircraft Information
Systems Section, AIR-622, Technical Innovation Policy Branch, Policy
and Innovation Division, Aircraft Certification Service, Federal
Aviation Administration, 2200 South 216th Street, Des Moines,
Washington 98198; telephone and fax 206-231-3159; email
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The substance of these special conditions
has been published in the Federal Register for public comment in
several prior instances with no substantive comments received.
Therefore, the FAA finds, pursuant to Sec. 11.38(b), that new comments
are unlikely, and notice and comment prior to this publication are
unnecessary.
Comments Invited
The FAA invites 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.
The FAA will consider all comments received by the closing date for
comments. The FAA may change these special conditions based on the
comments received.
Background
On May 15, 2020, Learjet applied for a supplemental type
certificate to install an Aircraft Health Management System (AHMS) in
the airplanes listed on the approved model list (AML) for STC No.
ST01970WI. These airplanes are super-midsize-category business jets
with maximum passenger capacity of 16. These airplanes have a maximum
takeoff weight of 38,850 pounds.
Type Certification Basis
Under the provisions of 14 CFR 21.101, Learjet must show that
airplanes for which they make application to modify by STC no.
ST01970WI, as changed, continue to meet the applicable provisions of
the regulations
[[Page 1663]]
listed in each airplane's respective type certificate 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 (e.g., 14 CFR part 25) do not contain adequate or
appropriate safety standards for the listed 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 models for which
they are issued. Should the applicant apply for a supplemental type
certificate to modify any other models included on the same type
certificate to incorporate the same novel or unusual design feature,
these special conditions would also apply to the other models under
Sec. 21.101.
In addition to the applicable airworthiness regulations and special
conditions, the airplanes listed in the AML 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 Sec. 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 airplanes listed on the AML in STC no. ST01970WI will
incorporate the following novel or unusual design features:
The installation of an AHMS that allows connection to airplane
electronics and networks, and access from aircraft external sources
(e.g., operator networks, wireless devices, internet connectivity,
service provider satellite communications, electronic flight bags,
etc.) to the previously isolated airplane electronic assets (networks,
systems, and databases).
Discussion
The architecture and network configuration of the airplanes listed
on the AML of STC no. ST01970WI are novel or unusual for commercial
transport airplanes because they may allow increased connectivity to
and access from external network sources, airline operations, and
maintenance networks to the airplanes' control domain and airline
information-services domain. The airplanes' control domain and airline
information-services domain perform functions required for the safe
operation and maintenance of the airplanes. Previously, these domains
had very limited connectivity with external network sources. This data
network and design integration creates a potential for unauthorized
persons to access the aircraft-control domain and airline information-
services domain, and presents security vulnerabilities related to the
introduction of computer viruses and worms, user errors, and
intentional sabotage of airplane electronic assets (networks, systems,
and databases) critical to the safety and maintenance of the airplanes.
The existing FAA regulations did not anticipate these networked
airplane-system architectures. Furthermore, these regulations and the
current guidance material do not address potential security
vulnerabilities, which could be exploited by unauthorized access to
airplane networks, data buses, and servers. Therefore, these special
conditions ensure that the security (i.e., confidentiality, integrity,
and availability) of airplane systems is not compromised by
unauthorized wired or wireless electronic connections. This includes
ensuring that the security of the airplanes' systems is not compromised
during maintenance of airplane electronic systems. These special
conditions also require the applicant to provide appropriate
instructions to the operator to maintain all electronic-system
safeguards that have been implemented as part of the original network
design, so that this feature does not allow or reintroduce security
threats.
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
airplanes listed in the AML of STC no. ST01970WI. Should Learjet apply
at a later date for another STC, to include another airplane model with
the same novel or unusual design feature, these special conditions
would also apply to that model as well. These special conditions are
not applicable to those airplane models for which special conditions
for protection from unauthorized external access have already been
issued to the type certificate for those specific models.
These special conditions are only applicable to design changes
applied for after its effective date.
Conclusion
This action affects only a certain novel or unusual design feature
for airplane models listed on the AML of STC no. ST01970WI, as modified
by Learjet. It is not a rule of general applicability and affects only
the applicant.
List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 25
Aircraft, Aviation safety, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements.
Authority Citation
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
[squf] 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 airplane models listed on the
approved model list of supplemental type certificate no. ST01970WI, as
modified by Learjet.
1. The applicant must ensure airplane electronic-system security
protection from access by unauthorized sources external to the
airplane, including those possibly caused by maintenance activity.
2. The applicant must ensure that electronic-system security
threats are identified and assessed, and that effective electronic-
system security-protection strategies are implemented to protect the
airplane from all adverse impacts on safety, functionality, and
continued airworthiness.
3. The applicant must establish appropriate procedures to allow the
operator to ensure that continued airworthiness of the airplane is
maintained, including all post-type-certification modifications that
may have an impact on the approved electronic-system security
safeguards.
Issued in Kansas City, Missouri, on January 6, 2022.
Patrick R. Mullen,
Manager, Technical Innovation Policy Branch, Policy and Innovation
Division, Aircraft Certification Service.
[FR Doc. 2022-00390 Filed 1-11-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-13-P