[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 69 (Monday, April 11, 2022)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 21044-21047]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-07618]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 39

[Docket No. FAA-2022-0454; Project Identifier MCAI-2021-01124-T]
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: The FAA proposes to supersede Airworthiness Directive (AD) 
2019-03-25, which applies to certain Airbus SAS Model A318 series 
airplanes; Model A319-111, -112, -113, -114, -115, -131, -132, and -133 
airplanes; Model A320-211, -212, -214, -216, -231, -232, and -233 
airplanes; and Model A321-111, -112, -131, -211, -212, -213, -231, and 
-232 airplanes. AD 2019-03-25 requires repetitive inspections of the 
center and outer wing box lower stiffeners and panels at a certain 
junction on the left- and right-hand sides for any cracking, and repair 
if necessary. AD 2019-03-25 also provides an optional modification, 
which would terminate the repetitive inspections. Since the FAA issued 
AD 2019-03-25, it has been determined that, for certain airplanes, the 
compliance time for the initial inspection is inadequate and must be 
revised. This proposed AD continues to require the actions specified in 
AD 2019-03-25 with revised compliance times for certain airplanes and 
additional actions for certain airplanes, and expands the 
applicability, as specified in a European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) 
AD, which is proposed for incorporation by reference. 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 May 26, 
2022.

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: U.S. Department of Transportation, Docket 
Operations, M-30, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New 
Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., 
Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
    For material that will be incorporated by reference (IBR) in this 
AD, contact EASA, Konrad-Adenauer-Ufer 3, 50668 Cologne, Germany; 
telephone +49 221 8999 000; email [email protected]; internet 
www.easa.europa.eu. You may find this material on the EASA website at 
https://ad.easa.europa.eu. You may view this material at the FAA, 
Airworthiness Products Section, Operational Safety Branch, 2200 South 
216th St., Des Moines, WA. For information on the availability of this 
material at the FAA, call 206-231-3195. It is also available in the AD 
docket at https://www.regulations.gov by searching for and locating 
Docket No. FAA-2022-0454.

Examining the AD Docket

    You may examine the AD docket at https://www.regulations.gov by 
searching for and locating Docket No. FAA-2022-0454; 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), any comments 
received, and other information. The street address for Docket 
Operations is listed above.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Vladimir Ulyanov, Aerospace Engineer, 
Large Aircraft Section, FAA, International Validation Branch, 2200 
South 216th St., Des Moines, WA 98198; telephone and fax 206-231-3223; 
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 ADDRESSES. Include ``Docket No. FAA-2022-0454; Project Identifier 
MCAI-2021-01124-T'' at the beginning of your comments. The most helpful 
comments reference a specific portion of the proposal, explain the 
reason for any recommended change, and include supporting data. The FAA 
will consider all comments received by the closing date and may amend 
this proposal 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 agency will also post a report summarizing each 
substantive verbal contact received about this NPRM.

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 
Vladimir Ulyanov, Aerospace Engineer, Large Aircraft Section, FAA, 
International Validation Branch, 2200 South 216th St., Des Moines, WA 
98198; telephone and fax

[[Page 21045]]

206-231-3223; email [email protected]. Any commentary that the 
FAA receives which is not specifically designated as CBI will be placed 
in the public docket for this rulemaking.

Background

    The FAA issued AD 2019-03-25, Amendment 39-19577 (84 FR 8805, March 
12, 2019) (AD 2019-03-25), which applies to certain Airbus SAS Model 
A318 series airplanes; Model A319-111, -112, -113, -114, -115, -131, -
132, and -133 airplanes; Model A320-211, -212, -214, -216, -231, -232, 
and -233 airplanes; and Model A321-111, -112, -131, -211, -212, -213, -
231, and -232 airplanes. AD 2019-03-25 requires repetitive special 
detailed inspections (SDIs) of the center and outer wing box lower 
stiffeners and panels at a certain junction on the left- and right-hand 
sides for any cracking, and repair if necessary. AD 2019-03-25 also 
provides an optional modification, which would terminate the repetitive 
inspections. The FAA issued AD 2019-03-25 to address the loss of pre-
tension in the fasteners, which could affect the structural integrity 
of the airplane.

Actions Since AD 2019-03-25 Was Issued

    Since the FAA issued AD 2019-03-25, it has been determined that, 
for certain airplanes, the compliance time for the initial inspection 
is inadequate and must be revised and additional actions are required. 
Additionally, the applicability is expanded.
    EASA, which is the Technical Agent for the Member States of the 
European Union, has issued EASA AD 2021-0228, dated October 12, 2021 
(EASA AD 2021-0228) (also referred to as the MCAI), to correct an 
unsafe condition for certain Airbus SAS Model A318 series airplanes; 
Model A319-111, -112, -113, -114, -115, -131, -132, and -133 airplanes; 
Model A320-211, -212, -214, -215, -216, -231, -232, and -233 airplanes; 
and Model A321-111, -112, -131, -211, -212, -213, -231, and -232 
airplanes. Model A320-215 airplanes are not certificated by the FAA and 
are not included on the U.S. type certificate data sheet; this AD 
therefore does not include those airplanes in the applicability.
    EASA AD 2021-0228 superseded EASA AD 2018-0218, dated October 11, 
2018; corrected October 26, 2018 (which corresponds to FAA AD 2019-03-
25).
    This proposed AD was prompted by a report that taperloks used in 
the wing-to-fuselage junction at rib 1 were found to be noncompliant 
with the applicable specification, resulting in a loss of pre-tension 
in the fasteners; and a determination that, for certain airplanes, the 
compliance time for the initial inspection is inadequate and must be 
revised. The FAA is proposing this AD to address the loss of pre-
tension in the fasteners, which could affect the structural integrity 
of the airplane. See the MCAI for additional background information.

Explanation of Retained Requirements

    Although this proposed AD does not explicitly restate the 
requirements of AD 2019-03-25, this proposed AD would retain the 
requirements of AD 2019-03-25. Those requirements are referenced in 
EASA AD 2021-0228, which, in turn, is referenced in paragraph (g) of 
this proposed AD.

Related Service Information Under 1 CFR Part 51

    EASA AD 2021-0228 specifies procedures for repetitive internal and 
external SDIs (ultrasonic inspections) of the center and outer wing box 
lower stiffeners and panels at the level of rib 1 junction on the left- 
and right-hand sides for any cracking, and repair if necessary; and 
additional actions (re-protection of the inspected area at the lower 
panel at rib1 junction at the left- and right-hand sides) for airplanes 
on which certain service information was used. EASA AD 2021-0228 also 
specifies procedures for an optional modification, which would 
terminate the repetitive inspections. This material 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

    These products have been approved by the aviation authority of 
another country and are approved for operation in the United States. 
Pursuant to the FAA's bilateral agreement with the State of Design 
Authority, it has notified the FAA of the unsafe condition described in 
the MCAI referenced above. The FAA is issuing this NPRM after 
determining that the unsafe condition described previously is likely to 
exist or develop in other products of these same type designs.

Proposed AD Requirements in This NPRM

    This proposed AD would require accomplishing the actions specified 
in EASA AD 2021-0228 described previously, except for any differences 
identified as exceptions in the regulatory text of this proposed AD.

Explanation of Required Compliance Information

    In the FAA's ongoing efforts to improve the efficiency of the AD 
process, the FAA developed a process to use some civil aviation 
authority (CAA) ADs as the primary source of information for compliance 
with requirements for corresponding FAA ADs. The FAA has been 
coordinating this process with manufacturers and CAAs. As a result, the 
FAA proposes to incorporate EASA AD 2021-0228 by reference in the FAA 
final rule. This proposed AD would, therefore, require compliance with 
EASA AD 2021-0228 in its entirety through that incorporation, except 
for any differences identified as exceptions in the regulatory text of 
this proposed AD. Using common terms that are the same as the heading 
of a particular section in EASA AD 2021-0228 does not mean that 
operators need comply only with that section. For example, where the AD 
requirement refers to ``all required actions and compliance times,'' 
compliance with this AD requirement is not limited to the section 
titled ``Required Action(s) and Compliance Time(s)'' in EASA AD 2021-
0228. Service information required by EASA AD 2021-0228 for compliance 
will be available at https://www.regulations.gov by searching for and 
locating Docket No. FAA-2022-0454 after the FAA final rule is 
published.

Costs of Compliance

    The FAA estimates that this proposed AD affects 765 airplanes of 
U.S. registry. The FAA estimates the following costs to comply with 
this proposed AD:

                                      Estimated Costs for Required Actions
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                                                                              Cost per          Cost on U.S.
              Action                      Labor cost         Parts cost        product           operators
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Retained actions from 2019-03-25..  51 work-hours x $85                $0          $4,335  $25,860 (516
                                     per hour = $4,335.                                     airplanes).

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New additional proposed actions...  13 work-hours x $85                 0           1,105  Up to $845,325 (Up to
                                     per hour = $1,105.                                     765 airplanes).
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    The FAA has received no definitive data that would enable the 
agency to provide cost estimates for the repair specified in this 
proposed AD.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    A federal agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not 
required to respond to, nor shall a person be subject to a penalty for 
failure to comply with a collection of information subject to the 
requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act unless that collection of 
information displays a current valid OMB Control Number. The OMB 
Control Number for this information collection is 2120-0056. Public 
reporting for this collection of information is estimated to take 
approximately 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing 
instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and 
maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the 
collection of information. All responses to this collection of 
information are mandatory. Send comments regarding this burden estimate 
or any other aspect of this collection of information, including 
suggestions for reducing this burden, to: Information Collection 
Clearance Officer, Federal Aviation Administration, 10101 Hillwood 
Parkway, Fort Worth, TX 76177-1524.

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.

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) Would not affect intrastate aviation in Alaska, and
    (3) Would 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:
0
a. Removing Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2019-03-25, Amendment 39-19577 
(84 FR 8805, March 12, 2019); and
0
b. Adding the following new AD:

Airbus SAS: Docket No. FAA-2022-0454; Project Identifier MCAI-2021-
01124-T.

(a) Comments Due Date

    The FAA must receive comments on this airworthiness directive 
(AD) by May 26, 2022.

(b) Affected ADs

    This AD replaces AD 2019-03-25, Amendment 39-19577 (84 FR 8805, 
March 12, 2019) (AD 2019-03-25).

(c) Applicability

    This AD applies to Airbus SAS Model A318-111, -112, -121, and -
122 airplanes; Model A319-111, -112, -113, -114, -115, -131, -132, 
and -133 airplanes; Model A320-211, -212, -214, -216, -231, -232, 
and -233 airplanes; and Model A321-111, -112, -131, -211, -212, -
213, -231, and -232 airplanes; certificated in any category; as 
identified in European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) AD 2021-0228, 
dated October 12, 2021 (EASA AD 2021-0228).

(d) Subject

    Air Transport Association (ATA) of America Code 57, Wings.

(e) Unsafe Condition

    This AD was prompted by a report that taperloks used in the 
wing-to-fuselage junction at rib 1 were found to be non-compliant 
with the applicable specification, resulting in a loss of pre-
tension in the fasteners; and a determination that, for certain 
airplanes, the compliance time for the initial inspection is 
inadequate and must be revised and additional actions are required. 
The FAA is issuing this AD to address the loss of pre-tension in the 
fasteners, which could affect the structural integrity of the 
airplane.

(f) Compliance

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

(g) Requirements

    Except as specified in paragraph (h) of this AD: Comply with all 
required actions and compliance times specified in, and in 
accordance with, EASA AD 2021-0228.

(h) Exceptions to EASA AD 2021-0228

    (1) Where EASA AD 2021-0228 refers to its effective date, this 
AD requires using the effective date of this AD.
    (2) Where paragraph (3) of EASA AD 2021-0228 specifies to 
``contact Airbus for approved repair instructions'' if any damage 
(cracking) is found, for this AD, if any cracking is found, the 
cracking must be repaired before further flight using a method 
approved by the Manager, Large Aircraft Section, International 
Validation Branch, FAA; or EASA; or Airbus SAS's EASA Design 
Organization Approval (DOA). If approved by the DOA, the approval 
must include the DOA-authorized signature.
    (3) The ``Remarks'' section of EASA AD 2021-0228 does not apply 
to this AD.

(i) Additional FAA AD Provisions

    The following provisions also apply to this AD:
    (1) Alternative Methods of Compliance (AMOCs): The Manager, 
Large Aircraft

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Section, International Validation 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 responsible Flight Standards Office, 
as appropriate. If sending information directly to the Large 
Aircraft Section, International Validation Branch, send it to the 
attention of the person identified in paragraph (j)(2). Before using 
any approved AMOC, notify your appropriate principal inspector, or 
lacking a principal inspector, the manager of the responsible Flight 
Standards Office.
    (2) Contacting the Manufacturer: For any requirement in this AD 
to obtain instructions from a manufacturer, the instructions must be 
accomplished using a method approved by the Manager, Large Aircraft 
Section, International Validation Branch, FAA; or EASA; or Airbus 
SAS's EASA Design Organization Approval (DOA). If approved by the 
DOA, the approval must include the DOA-authorized signature.
    (3) Required for Compliance (RC): For any service information 
referenced in EASA AD 2021-0228 that contains paragraphs that are 
labeled as RC, the instructions in RC paragraphs, including 
subparagraphs under an RC paragraph, must be done to comply with 
this AD; any paragraphs, including subparagraphs under those 
paragraphs, that are not identified as RC are recommended. The 
instructions in paragraphs, including subparagraphs under those 
paragraphs, not identified as RC may be deviated from using accepted 
methods in accordance with the operator's maintenance or inspection 
program without obtaining approval of an AMOC, provided the 
instructions identified as RC can be done and the airplane can be 
put back in an airworthy condition. Any substitutions or changes to 
instructions identified as RC require approval of an AMOC.

(j) Related Information

    (1) For EASA AD 2021-0228 contact EASA, Konrad-Adenauer-Ufer 3, 
50668 Cologne, Germany; telephone +49 221 8999 000; email 
[email protected]; internet www.easa.europa.eu. You may find this 
EASA AD on the EASA website at https://ad.easa.europa.eu. You may 
view this material at the FAA, Airworthiness Products Section, 
Operational Safety Branch, 2200 South 216th St., Des Moines, WA. For 
information on the availability of this material at the FAA, call 
206-231-3195. This material may be found in the AD docket at https://www.regulations.gov by searching for and locating Docket No. FAA-
2022-0454.
    (2) For more information about this AD, contact Vladimir 
Ulyanov, Aerospace Engineer, Large Aircraft Section, FAA, 
International Validation Branch, 2200 South 216th St., Des Moines, 
WA 98198; telephone and fax 206-231-3223; email 
[email protected].

    Issued on April 5, 2022.
Lance T. Gant,
Director, Compliance & Airworthiness Division, Aircraft Certification 
Service.
[FR Doc. 2022-07618 Filed 4-8-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-13-P