[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 136 (Friday, July 17, 2026)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 44735-44740]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2026-14481]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Aviation Administration
14 CFR Part 39
[Docket No. FAA-2025-3436; Project Identifier MCAI-2024-00314-R;
Amendment 39-23408; AD 2026-14-07]
RIN 2120-AA64
Airworthiness Directives; Bell Textron Canada Limited Helicopters
AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for
certain Bell Textron Canada Limited (Bell) Model 407 helicopters. This
AD was prompted by a report of a fractured pilot cyclic stick tube and
subsequent findings of other pilot cyclic stick tubes with fatigue
cracking. This AD requires repetitively inspecting the pilot cyclic
stick tube assembly for a crack and, depending on the results,
repairing or replacing the pilot cyclic stick tube assembly. The FAA is
issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.
DATES: This AD is effective August 21, 2026.
The Director of the Federal Register approved the incorporation by
reference of a certain publication listed in this AD as of August 21,
2026.
ADDRESSES:
AD Docket: You may examine the AD docket at regulations.gov under
Docket No. FAA-2025-3436; 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 final rule, the mandatory continuing airworthiness
information (MCAI), any comments received, and other information. The
address for Docket Operations is U.S. Department of Transportation,
Docket Operations, M-91, West Building Fifth Floor, Room W58-213, 1200
New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590.
Material Incorporated by Reference:
For Transport Canada material identified in this AD,
contact Transport Canada, Transport Canada National Aircraft
Certification, 159 Cleopatra Drive, Nepean, Ontario, K1A 0N5, Canada;
phone: (888) 663-3639; email: [email protected]">tc.airworthinessdirectives-consignesdenavigabilite.[email protected]; website: tc.canada.ca/en/
aviation. You may find the Transport Canada material on the Transport
Canada website at tc.canada.ca/en/aviation.
You may view this material at the FAA, Airworthiness
Products Section, Operational Safety Branch, 10101 Hillwood Parkway,
Fort Worth, TX 76177. For information on the availability of this
material at the FAA, call (817) 222-5110. It is also available at
regulations.gov under Docket No. FAA-2025-3436.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Alexis Whitaker, Aviation Safety
Engineer, FAA, 1600 Stewart Avenue, Suite 410, Westbury, NY 11590;
phone: (516) 228-7309; email: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The FAA issued a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to amend 14
CFR part 39 by adding an AD that would apply to certain Bell Model 407
helicopters. The NPRM was published in the Federal Register on November
18, 2025 (90 FR 51602). The NPRM was prompted by AD CF-2024-18, dated
May 29, 2024 (Transport Canada AD CF-2024-18) (also referred to as the
MCAI), issued by Transport Canada, which is the aviation authority for
Canada. The MCAI states that Bell received a report that a pilot cyclic
stick tube assembly having part number (P/N) 206-001-342-101 fractured
at the lower end of the tube near the upper slotted area where it is
held in place in the pivot assembly. Examination of the fractured pilot
cyclic stick tube and subsequent findings of other cracked pilot cyclic
stick tubes revealed fatigue cracking. Further investigation identified
the root cause of the pilot cyclic stick tube cracking as the
application of excessive force to the cyclic stick during the freedom
of movement of the controls and cyclic centering light operation check
as part of the interior and prestart check, which resulted in elevated
stress at the slotted area and was aggravated by the high stress
concentration design feature of the upper slotted area.
In the NPRM, the FAA proposed to require repetitively inspecting
the pilot cyclic stick tube assembly for cracking and, depending on the
results, repairing or replacing the pilot cyclic stick tube assembly.
The FAA is issuing this AD to detect and correct a crack in the pilot
cyclic stick tube which, if not addressed, could lead to an in-flight
failure of the pilot cyclic stick tube and consequent loss of control
of the helicopter.
You may examine the MCAI in the AD docket at regulations.gov under
Docket No. FAA-2025-3436.
Discussion of Final Airworthiness Directive
Comments
The FAA received comments from the Citizens Rulemaking Alliance.
The following presents the comments received on the NPRM and the FAA's
response to each comment.
Request To Issue an NPRM or Justify Forgoing Notice and Comment
The Citizens Rulemaking Alliance requested that the FAA either
convert this action to an NPRM or provide its justification for finding
good cause to bypass notice and comment procedures, extend the
effective date to at least 30 days after publication, commit in the
preamble to responding to comments, and adjust the AD accordingly
within a defined short timeframe. Alternatively, the commenter
requested that the AD record be supplemented to provide a more specific
explanation tied to the particular failure mode why an NPRM was
impracticable. The commenter asserted the FAA has not adequately
justified use of the good cause exemption to bypass notice and comment
and the 30-day delayed effective date.
The FAA notes the comment was submitted in response to an NPRM for
which the FAA provided a 45-day comment period. This final rule is
effective 35 days after its publication in the Federal Register.
Therefore, no change to this AD is necessary.
Request To Comply With the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA)
The Citizens Rulemaking Alliance requested that the FAA revise the
proposed AD to comply with the PRA
[[Page 44736]]
if reporting is required or suspend any reporting provisions until PRA
requirements are satisfied. If reporting is not required, the commenter
requested the FAA clarify that in the AD.
The FAA notes paragraph (i) of this AD specifies that this AD does
not require reporting. If an AD were to require reporting, the preamble
of the final rule would include a paragraph titled ``Paperwork
Reduction Act'' that would provide the applicable OMB control number,
required PRA statements, and the estimated time to collect the required
information (burden). Any costs associated with the reporting
requirement would be included in the Costs of Compliance section in the
preamble of the final rule. Therefore, the FAA did not change this AD
as a result of this comment.
Request To Make Incorporation by Reference (IBR) Materials Reasonably
Available
The Citizens Rulemaking Alliance stated that the FAA's current
practices for IBR frequently fail to meet the legal and regulatory
standards for reasonable availability. The commenter called on the FAA
to guarantee that all IBR materials are easily and freely accessible to
the public and affected parties for both commenting and compliance
purposes. The commenter also requested that this access be documented
in the rulemaking record.
The FAA notes that this AD incorporates by reference Transport
Canada AD CF-2024-18, not the manufacturer service information
referenced in that Transport Canada AD. The FAA posted Transport Canada
AD CF-2024-18 to the AD docket when the NPRM was published in the
Federal Register. The material referenced in Transport Canada AD CF-
2024-18 may only be posted before the final rule's publication if it is
already publicly available or if there is written consent from the
owner of that material. Additionally, the FAA provided notice in the
NPRM that the material referenced in Transport Canada AD CF-2024-18
will be available in the AD docket after this AD is published.
Therefore, the FAA did not change this AD as a result of this comment.
Request To Consider Impact on Small Entities and Compliance Costs
The Citizens Rulemaking Alliance requested that the FAA expand the
proposed economic analysis to consider the impacts on small-entities
and to offer explicit alternatives where justified. The commenter
argued that the FAA's standard labor rate of $85 per work-hour
underestimates total labor costs and downtime experienced by operators
and maintenance providers. The commenter instead suggested a labor rate
between $110 and $140 per work-hour, in addition to accounting for
costs related to ferry flights, lost revenue, and parts scarcity.
Compliance Costs
The FAA has determined that the current labor rate of $85 per hour
remains accurate for this AD. The FAA evaluates this rate periodically,
based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistic data found at data.bls.gov/oes,
and will change the rate when appropriate. The FAA used a blended wage
rate to estimate the labor rate for this AD, where the FAA assumes 60
percent weight for aircraft mechanics (at a fully burdened mean wage
rate of $69.85 per hour) and 40 percent for general and operations
managers (at a fully burdened mean wage rate of $108.15 per hour). To
calculate the blended wage rate, the FAA multiplied each wage rate by
its corresponding weight and added up the products to obtain a wage
rate of $85.17, which the FAA rounded down to $85.
The FAA also recognizes that, in doing the actions required by an
AD, operators might incur indirect or incidental costs in addition to
the direct costs. The cost analysis in an AD typically describes only
the direct costs of the specific actions required by an AD, which does
not include indirect or incidental costs such as downtime, loss of
revenue, planning, or time necessitated by other administrative actions
since those costs might vary significantly among operators. In the Cost
of Compliance section of the proposed AD, the FAA disclosed the
estimated number of work hours, the number of helicopters affected on
the U.S. registry (updated in this final rule), and an estimated parts
cost. Since the FAA has assessed and disclosed the total known costs of
the AD requirements in the Costs of Compliance section of the proposed
AD, and the commenter did not provide additional cost data for the FAA
to consider in its cost analysis, it is not necessary to provide
additional cost information for this AD.
Small Entities to Which This AD Applies
The FAA has considered the AD's impact on small businesses and
provides the following factual basis for its Regulatory Flexibility Act
(RFA) certification.
The Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980, Public Law 96-354, 94 Stat.
1164 (5 U.S.C. 601-612), as amended by the Small Business Regulatory
Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996 (Pub. L. 104-121, 110 Stat. 857, Mar.
29, 1996) and the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 (Pub. L. 111-240, 124
Stat. 2504, Sept. 27, 2010), requires Federal agencies to consider the
effects of the regulatory action on small business and other small
entities and to minimize any significant economic impact. The term
``small entities'' comprises small businesses and not-for-profit
organizations that are independently owned and operated and are not
dominant in their fields, and governmental jurisdictions with
populations of less than 50,000.
The FAA used the definition of small entities in the RFA for this
analysis. The RFA defines small entities as small businesses, small
governmental jurisdictions, or small organizations. In 5 U.S.C. 601(3),
the RFA defines ``small business'' to have the same meaning as ``small
business concern'' under section 3 of the Small Business Act. The Small
Business Act authorizes the Small Business Administration (SBA) to
define ``small business'' by issuing regulations.
The SBA (2023) has established size standards for various types of
economic activities, or industries, under the North American Industry
Classification System (NAICS). These size standards generally define
small businesses based on the number of employees or annual receipts.
Note that the SBA definition of a small business applies to the parent
company and all affiliates as a single entity.
To identify small entities, the FAA first identified the primary
NAICS of the entity or parent company, and then used data from
different sources (e.g., company annual reports, Bureau of
Transportation Statistics) to determine whether the entity meets the
applicable size standard. This AD will affect approximately 299
domestic entities, of which the FAA identified approximately 91 as
small entities. The table below presents the industries of the small
entities, the average annual revenue, and the AD's estimated low-case
and high-case cost burden relative to that average annual revenue.
[[Page 44737]]
Estimated Number of Small Entities by Industry and Cost Significance
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Average per-entity impact
Affected small Average annual (cost/revenue)
NAICS code Description entities revenue \1\ ($) -------------------------------
Low-case (%) High-case (%)
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111998...................... All Other 1 368,190 0.18 0.55
Miscellaneous
Crop Farming.
112990...................... All Other 3 510,257 0.16 0.58
Animal
Production.
115210...................... Support 1 7,270,000 0.01 0.03
Activities for
Animal
Production.
211120...................... Crude Petroleum 1 37,500,000 0.00 0.01
Extraction.
236115...................... New Single- 1 16,690,000 0.00 0.01
family Housing
Construction
(Except For-
Sale Builders).
237120...................... Oil and Gas 1 10,780,000 0.01 0.02
Pipeline and
Related
Structures
Construction.
237210...................... Land 1 2,340,000 0.03 0.09
Subdivision.
237310...................... Highway, 2 27,810,000 0.00 0.01
Street, and
Bridge
Construction.
238160...................... Roofing 1 2,850,000 0.01 0.07
Contractors.
332994...................... Small Arms, 1 10,030,000 0.00 0.02
Ordnance, and
Ordnance
Accessories
Manufacturing.
333241...................... Food Product 1 23,510,000 0.00 0.01
Machinery
Manufacturing.
336413...................... Other Aircraft 1 3,050,000 0.01 0.07
Part and
Auxiliary
Equipment
Manufacturing.
336612...................... Boat Building.. 1 13,210,000 0.00 0.02
423520...................... Coal and Other 1 2,680,000 0.01 0.08
Mineral and
Ore Merchant
Wholesalers.
423690...................... Other 1 9,870,000 0.00 0.02
Electronic
Parts and
Equipment
Merchant
Wholesalers.
423860...................... Transportation 1 1,050,000 0.19 0.58
Equipment and
Supplies
(except Motor
Vehicle)
Merchant
Wholesalers.
424720...................... Petroleum and 1 68,740,000 0.00 0.00
Petroleum
Products
Merchant
Wholesalers
(except Bulk
Stations and
Terminals).
425120...................... Wholesale Trade 1 86,250 0.79 2.35
Agents and
Brokers.
441110...................... New Car Dealers 1 1,950,000 0.01 0.10
445320...................... Beer, Wine, and 1 1,460,000 0.01 0.14
Liquor
Retailers.
481211...................... Nonscheduled 9 4,472,556 0.17 0.55
Chartered
Passenger Air
Transportation.
481212...................... Nonscheduled 1 4,470,000 0.02 0.05
Chartered
Freight Air
Transportation.
481219...................... Other 27 4,046,684 0.15 0.59
Nonscheduled
Air
Transportation.
482111...................... Line Haul 1 120,380,000 0.00 0.00
Railroads.
483111...................... Deep Sea 1 85,390,000 0.00 0.00
Freight
Transport.
487990...................... Scenic and 5 1,410,280 0.31 0.91
Sightseeing
Transportation
, Other.
488190...................... Other Support 1 4,590,000 0.01 0.04
Activities for
Air
Transportation.
523999...................... Miscellaneous 1 1,020,000 0.07 0.20
Financial
Investment
Activities.
531210...................... Offices of Real 1 7,770,000 0.00 0.03
Estate Agents
and Brokers.
532411...................... Commercial Air, 5 6,707,156 0.08 0.37
Rail, and
Water
Transportation
Equipment
Rental and
Leasing.
541330...................... Engineering 1 10,250,000 0.00 0.04
Services.
541715...................... Other Aircraft 1 308,970 0.22 0.66
Parts and
Auxiliary
Equipment.
551112...................... Offices of 1 319,540 0.06 0.63
Other Holding
Companies.
561110...................... Office 2 995,205 0.06 0.52
Administrative
Services.
611512...................... Flight Training 6 815,272 0.15 0.63
611620...................... Sports and 1 1,070,000 0.08 0.38
Recreation
Instruction.
621910...................... Ambulance 4 11,147,500 0.11 0.44
Services.
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\1\ Source: Dun & Bradstreet, D&B Hoovers, retrieved April 28, 2026, app.hoovers.dnb.com; ZoomInfo, ZoomInfo
Technologie Inc., retrieved April 28, 2026, zoominfo.com.
[[Page 44738]]
Small Entity Impacts
While the FAA has determined that this final rule affects a
substantial number of small entities, the compliance costs of the AD
relative to each small entity's annual revenue is minimal in both the
low- and high-case scenarios. In the high-case scenario, the AD's cost
as a percentage of annual revenue imposes a mean impact of 0.46
percent. Therefore, as provided in section 605(b), the FAA certifies
that this AD will not result in a significant economic impact on a
substantial number of small entities.
The FAA did not change this AD as a result of this comment.
Conclusion
These products have been approved by the civil aviation authority
of another country and are approved for operation in the United States.
Pursuant to the FAA's bilateral agreement with this State of Design
Authority, that authority has notified the FAA of the unsafe condition
described in the MCAI referenced above. The FAA reviewed the relevant
data, considered any comments received, and determined that air safety
requires adopting this AD as proposed. Accordingly, the FAA is issuing
this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products. Except for
minor editorial changes, this AD is adopted as proposed in the NPRM.
None of the changes will increase the economic burden on any operator.
Material Incorporated by Reference Under 1 CFR Part 51
The FAA reviewed Transport Canada AD CF-2024-18, which specifies
procedures for revising the applicable Bell 407 rotorcraft flight
manual (RFM) Normal Procedures section to limit the allowable freedom
of movement during interior and prestart checks for certain serial-
numbered helicopters (Group 1 helicopters). Transport Canada AD CF-
2024-18 also specifies procedures for inspecting the pilot cyclic stick
tube assembly for cracks and replacing or repairing and reidentifying
any cracked pilot cyclic stick tube assembly for certain other serial-
numbered helicopters (Group 2 helicopters). If, as a result of an
inspection, a pilot cyclic stick tube assembly is repaired rather than
replaced, Transport Canada AD CF-2024-18 further specifies procedures
for repetitive inspections of the repaired pilot cyclic stick tube
assembly and replacement within 24 months after the repair. 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.
Differences Between This AD and the MCAI
The MCAI only applies to helicopter serial numbers 53000 through
53900, 53911 through 53999, 54000 through 54166, 54300 through 54800,
54805 through 54999, 56300 through 56305, and 56311 through 56315,
whereas this AD applies to all serial numbered Model 407 helicopters
with cyclic stick tube assembly P/N 206-001-342-101 or P/N 206-001-342-
101FM installed.
The MCAI specifies procedures for revising the applicable Bell 407
RFM Normal Procedures section for certain serial-numbered helicopters
to limit the allowable freedom of movement during interior and prestart
checks, whereas this AD does not because the full sweep for freedom of
movement is necessary to clear icing and detect any jamming or binding
during the pre-start check.
This AD also adds a repetitive inspection for pilot cyclic stick
tube assemblies that have accumulated 3,600 or more hours time-in-
service, at intervals not to exceed every 300 hours time-in-service or
6 months, whichever occurs first. This is from a determination that a
pilot cyclic control stick could experience high loading during
hydraulic-off training and other emergency procedure situations. This
inspection is not part of the MCAI.
Interim Action
The FAA considers that this AD is to be an interim action. If final
action is later identified, the FAA might consider further rulemaking.
Costs of Compliance
The FAA estimates that this AD affects 972 helicopters of U.S.
registry, of which 651 helicopters would have or will accumulate 3,600
hours time-in-service within the 2-year analysis period. The FAA
estimates the following costs to comply with this AD.
The FAA estimates operators of all helicopters will incur an
initial inspection cost of $340, and operators of a helicopter with
over 3,600 hours time-in-service will also incur a recurrent inspection
cost of $340. Repetitive inspections will occur once per inspection
cycle, which is either every 6 months or every 300 hours time-in-
service. The FAA assumes that the inspection cycle is 6 months for each
helicopter. Based upon the results of an inspection, operators could
incur three conditional repair costs. The FAA cannot estimate the
number of conditional repairs each operator would need to undertake.
The table below presents the estimated costs for required inspections
and any conditional repair and replacement costs.
Estimated Costs
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Cost per
Action Labor cost Parts cost product
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Required: Inspect pilot cyclic stick tube Up to 4 work-hours x $85 per $0 $340
assembly. hour = $340.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Conditional: Repair pilot cyclic stick tube 6 work-hours x $85 per hour = 0 510
assembly. $510.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Conditional: Repetitively inspect pilot cyclic 2 work-hours (per inspection) x 0 170
stick tube assembly. $85 per hour = $170.
Conditional: Replace pilot cyclic stick tube 2 work-hours x $85 per hour = 1,544 1,714
assembly. $170.
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The FAA used a 2-year analysis period for estimating the costs of
this AD. Because the FAA cannot estimate the number of helicopters
which would need repair or replacement, the FAA has created a low-case
and high-case cost scenario. In the low-case scenario, helicopters
would only incur inspections costs. In the high-case scenario, all
helicopters would have to replace their pilot cyclic sticks based upon
the results of their initial inspection.
In the low-case scenario, all 972 helicopters would incur an
initial inspection cost of $340, and all helicopters with over 3,600
hours time-in-service (651 helicopters) would undergo 3 repetitive
inspections of $340 each. In the high-case scenario, all 972
[[Page 44739]]
helicopters would incur an initial inspection cost of $340 and an
initial pilot cyclic repair cost of $510. All 972 helicopters would
then undergo 3 repetitive inspections of $510 (the sum of the required
$340 inspection cost and $170 conditional inspection cost). In year 2
of the analysis period, all helicopters would incur a $1,714 cost to
replace their pilot cyclic tube. The tables below present the costs
associated with the low- and high-case scenarios and a summary of the
total costs of this AD.
Low-Case Inspection Cost
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Repair/
Year Affected Initial Recurrent Inspection replacement Total cost
helicopters inspections inspections cost cost
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1....................................................... 972 972 651 $551,820 $0 $551,820
2....................................................... 651 0 1,302 442,680 0 442,680
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Total............................................... .............. 972 1,953 994,500 0 994,500
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
High-Case Inspection and Repair Cost
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Repair/
Year Affected Initial Recurrent Inspection replacement Total cost
helicopters inspections inspections cost cost
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1....................................................... 972 972 972 $826,200 $495,720 $1,321,920
2....................................................... 972 0 1,944 991,440 1,666,008 2,657,448
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total............................................... .............. 972 2,916 1,817,640 2,161,728 3,979,368
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Summary of Costs
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Industry costs Present value Annualized
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Undiscounted 7% 3% 7% 3%
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Low-Case Cost................... $994,500 $902,373 $953,016 $499,095 $498,056
High-Case Cost.................. 3,979,368 3,556,557 3,788,317 1,967,103 1,979,816
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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
This AD will not have federalism implications under Executive Order
13132. This AD will 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 that this AD:
(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 Amendment
Accordingly, under the authority delegated to me by the
Administrator, the FAA amends 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:
2026-14-07 Bell Textron Canada Limited: Amendment 39-23408; Docket
No. FAA-2025-3436; Project Identifier MCAI-2024-00314-R.
(a) Effective Date
This airworthiness directive (AD) is effective August 21, 2026.
(b) Affected ADs
None.
(c) Applicability
This AD applies to Bell Textron Canada Limited Model 407
helicopters, certificated in any category, with a pilot cyclic stick
tube assembly part number (P/N) 206-001-342-101 or P/N 206-001-342-
101FM installed.
(d) Subject
Joint Aircraft System Component (JASC) Code 6710, Main rotor
control.
(e) Unsafe Condition
This AD was prompted by a report of a fractured pilot cyclic
stick tube and subsequent findings of other pilot cyclic stick tubes
with fatigue cracking. The FAA is issuing this AD to detect and
correct a crack in the pilot cyclic stick tube which, if not
addressed, could lead to an in-flight failure of the pilot cyclic
stick tube and consequent loss of control of the helicopter.
[[Page 44740]]
(f) Compliance
Comply with this AD within the compliance times specified,
unless already done.
(g) Required Actions
(1) Except as specified in paragraphs (h) and (i) of this AD:
Comply with all required actions and compliance times specified in,
and in accordance with, Transport Canada AD CF-2024-18, dated May
29, 2024 (Transport Canada AD CF-2024-18).
(2) For a pilot cyclic stick tube assembly that has accumulated
3,600 or more hours time-in-service if, after complying with
paragraph (g)(1) of this AD, no cracks are identified, thereafter,
at intervals not to exceed 300 hours time-in-service or 6 months,
whichever occurs first, perform a detailed inspection of the pilot
cyclic stick tube assembly in accordance with Part II paragraph A.
of Transport Canada AD CF-2024-18.
(h) Exceptions to Transport Canada AD CF-2024-18
(1) Where Transport Canada AD CF-2024-18 refers to its effective
date, this AD requires using the effective date of this AD.
(2) Where Transport Canada AD CF-2024-18 requires compliance in
terms of air time, this AD requires using hours time-in-service.
(3) This AD does not adopt Part I, Rotorcraft Flight Manual
(RFM) Revision-Applicable to Group 1 Helicopters, of Transport
Canada AD CF-2024-18.
(4) Where Transport Canada AD CF-2024-18 states ``Part II-
Inspection and Replacement or Repair of Cyclic Stick Tube Assembly-
Applicable to Group 2 Helicopters'', this AD requires replacing that
text with ``Part II-Inspection and Replacement or Repair of Cyclic
Stick Tube Assembly-All Helicopters''.
(i) No Reporting Requirement
Although the material referenced in Transport Canada AD CF-2024-
18 specifies to submit certain information to the manufacturer, this
AD does not include that requirement.
(j) Alternative Methods of Compliance (AMOCs)
(1) The Manager, 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 local Flight
Standards District Office, as appropriate. If sending information
directly to the manager of the International Validation Branch, send
it to the attention of the person identified in paragraph (k) of
this AD and email to: [email protected].
(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.
(k) Additional Information
For more information about this AD, contact Alexis Whitaker,
Aviation Safety Engineer, FAA, 1600 Stewart Avenue, Suite 410,
Westbury, NY 11590; phone: (516) 228-7309; email:
[email protected].
(l) Material Incorporated by Reference
(1) The Director of the Federal Register approved the
incorporation by reference of the material listed in this paragraph
under 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51.
(2) You must use this material as applicable to do the actions
required by this AD, unless the AD specifies otherwise.
(i) Transport Canada AD CF-2024-18, dated May 29, 2024.
(ii) [Reserved].
(3) For Transport Canada material identified in this AD, contact
Transport Canada, Transport Canada National Aircraft Certification,
159 Cleopatra Drive, Nepean, Ontario, K1A 0N5, Canada; phone: (888)
663-3639; email: [email protected]">tc.airworthinessdirectives-consignesdenavigabilite.[email protected]; website: tc.canada.ca/en/
aviation. You may find the Transport Canada material on the
Transport Canada website at tc.canada.ca/en/aviation.
(4) You may view this material at the FAA, Airworthiness
Products Section, Operational Safety Branch, 10101 Hillwood Parkway,
Fort Worth, TX 76177. For information on the availability of this
material at the FAA, call (817) 222-5110.
(5) You may view this material at the National Archives and
Records Administration (NARA). For information on the availability
of this material at NARA, visit www.archives.gov/federal-register/cfr/ibr-locations or email [email protected].
Issued on July 9, 2026.
Steven W. Thompson,
Acting Deputy Director, Compliance & Airworthiness Division, Aircraft
Certification Service.
[FR Doc. 2026-14481 Filed 7-16-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-13-P