[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 17 (Thursday, January 25, 2024)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 4799-4800]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-01379]



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 Rules and Regulations
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  Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 17 / Thursday, January 25, 2024 / 
Rules and Regulations  

[[Page 4799]]



DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 25

[Docket No. FAA-2023-2436; Special Conditions No. 25-851-SC]


Special Conditions: Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation Model GVIII-
G700 and GVIII-G800 Series Airplanes; Installation of Therapeutic 
Oxygen System

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 Gulfstream 
Aerospace Corporation (Gulfstream) Model GVIII-G700 and GVIII-G800 
series airplanes. These airplanes 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 therapeutic oxygen system for medical 
use. 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 Gulfstream on January 25, 2024. Send 
comments on or before March 11, 2024.

ADDRESSES: Send comments identified by Docket No. FAA-2023-2436 using 
any of the following methods:
     Federal eRegulations Portal: Go to 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.
     Docket: Background documents or comments received may be 
read at 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: Robert Hettman, Mechanical Systems, 
AIR-623, Technical Policy Branch, Policy and Standards Division, 
Aircraft Certification Service, Federal Aviation Administration, 2200 
South 216th Street, Des Moines, Washington 98198; telephone and fax 
206-231-3171; 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 14 CFR 11.38(b), that new 
comments are unlikely, and notice and comment prior to this publication 
are unnecessary.

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 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 individual listed in the For Further 
Information Contact section above. Comments the FAA receives, which are 
not specifically designated as CBI, will be placed in the public docket 
for these special conditions.

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, and will consider comments filed late if it is possible to do 
so without incurring delay. The FAA may change these special conditions 
based on the comments received.

Background

    On December 31, 2019, Gulfstream applied for an amendment to Type 
Certificate No. T00015AT to include the new Model GVIII-G700 and GVIII-
G800 series airplanes. These airplanes, which are derivatives of the 
Model GVI currently approved under Type Certificate No. T00015AT, are 
twin-engine, transport-category airplanes, with a maximum seating for 
19 passengers, and a maximum take-off weight of 107,600 pounds (GVIII-
G700) and 105,600 pounds (GVIII-G800).

Type Certification Basis

    Under the provisions of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations (14 
CFR) 21.101, Gulfstream must show that the Model GVIII-G700 and GVIII-
G800 series airplanes meet the applicable provisions

[[Page 4800]]

of the regulations listed in Type Certificate No. T00015AT, 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 Gulfstream Model GVIII-G700 and 
GVIII-G800 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 Gulfstream Model GVIII-G700 and GVIII-G800 series 
airplanes must comply with the 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 14 CFR 11.38, and they become part of the type 
certification basis under Sec.  21.101.

Novel or Unusual Design Features

    The Gulfstream Model GVIII-G700 and GVIII-G800 series airplanes 
will incorporate the following novel or unusual design feature:
    An oxygen distribution system that provides a shared source of 
oxygen between the flightcrew and passengers to provide supplemental 
and therapeutic oxygen.

Discussion

    No specific regulations address the design and installation of 
required passenger or crew oxygen systems that share a supply source 
with an optional oxygen system used specifically for therapeutic 
applications. Therapeutic oxygen systems have been previously 
certified, and were generally considered an extension of the passenger 
oxygen system for the purpose of defining the applicable regulations. 
As a result, existing requirements, such as 14 CFR 25.1309, 25.1441(b) 
and (c), 25.1451, and 25.1453, in the Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation 
Model GVIII-G700 and GVIII-G800 airplanes' certification basis 
applicable to this project, provide some design standards appropriate 
for oxygen system installations. In addition, Sec.  25.1445 includes 
standards for oxygen distribution systems when oxygen is supplied to 
crew and passengers. If a common source of supply is used, Sec.  
25.1445(a)(2) requires a means to separately reserve the minimum supply 
required by the flight crew.
    Section 25.1445 is intended to protect the flightcrew by ensuring 
that an adequate supply of oxygen is available to complete a descent 
and landing following a loss of cabin pressure. When the regulation was 
written, the only passenger oxygen system designs were supplemental 
oxygen systems intended to protect passengers from hypoxia in the event 
of a decompression. Existing passenger oxygen systems did not include 
design features that would allow the flightcrew to control oxygen to 
passengers during flight. There are no similar requirements in Sec.  
25.1445 when oxygen is supplied from the same source to passengers for 
use during a decompression, and for discretionary or first-aid use any 
time during the flight. In the design, the crew, passenger, and 
therapeutic oxygen systems use the same source of oxygen. These special 
conditions contain additional design requirements for the equipment 
involved in this dual therapeutic oxygen plus supplemental gaseous 
oxygen 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 
Gulfstream Model GVIII-G700 and GVIII-G800 series airplanes. Should 
Gulfstream apply at a later date for a change to the type certificate 
to include another 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 apply to that model as 
well.

Conclusion

    This action affects only a certain novel or unusual design feature 
on Gulfstream model GVIII-G700 and GVIII-G800 series airplanes. It is 
not a rule of general applicability.

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, and 
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 Gulfstream Model GVIII-G700 and GVIII-
G800 series airplanes.
    The distribution system for the passenger therapeutic oxygen system 
must be designed and installed to meet requirements as follows:
    (1) When oxygen is supplied to passengers for both supplemental and 
therapeutic purposes, the distribution system must be designed for 
either--
    (a) A source of supplemental oxygen for protection following a loss 
of cabin pressure, and a separate source for therapeutic purposes; or
    (b) A common source of supply with means to separately reserve the 
minimum supply required by the passengers for supplemental use 
following a loss of cabin pressure.

    Issued in Kansas City, Missouri, on January 19, 2024.
Patrick R. Mullen,
Manager, Technical Innovation Policy Branch, Policy and Innovation 
Division, Aircraft Certification Service.
[FR Doc. 2024-01379 Filed 1-24-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-13-P