Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 42 / Monday, March 4, 2013 / Rules and Regulations 14005 

Federal Assistance Programs 

The title and number of the Federal 

assistance programs, as found in the 

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance, 

to which this rule applies are: 

10.406—Farm Operating Loans 

10.407—Farm Ownership Loans 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

The provisions in this interim rule 

require no revisions to the information 

collection requirements that were 

previously approved by OMB under 

control number 0560–0155. 

E-Government Act Compliance 

FSA is committed to complying with 

the E-Government Act, to promote the 

use of the Internet and other 

information technologies to provide 

increased opportunities for citizen 

access to Government information and 

services, and for other purposes. 

List of Subjects 

7 CFR Part 761 

Accounting, Loan programs— 

agriculture, Rural areas. 

7 CFR Part 762 

Agriculture, Credit, Loan programs— 

agriculture, Reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements. 

For the reasons set out in the 

preamble, this rule amends 7 CFR parts 

761 and 762 as follows: 

PART 761—GENERAL PROGRAM 

ADMINISTRATION 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 761 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 301 and 7 U.S.C. 1989. 

■ 2. Amend § 761.2 as follows: 

■ a. In paragraph (a), add, in 

alphabetical order, the abbreviation 

‘‘LIBOR’’ to read as follows, and 

■ b. In paragraph (b), remove the 

definition of ‘‘average agricultural loan 

customer’’. 

§ 761.2 Abbreviations and definitions. 

* * * * * 

(a) * * * 

LIBOR London Interbank Offered 

Rate. 

* * * * * 

PART 762—GUARANTEED FARM 

LOANS 

■ 3. The authority citation for part 762 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 301, 7 U.S.C. 1989. 

■ 4. Amend § 762.124 as follows: 

■ a. Revise paragraphs (a)(2) and (a)(3) 

to read as set forth below, 

■ b. Redesignate paragraphs (a)(4) and 

(a)(5) as (a)(5) and (a)(6), and 

■ c. Add new paragraph (a)(4) to read as 

set forth below: 

§ 762.124 Interest rate, terms, charges, 

and fees. 

(a) * * * 

(2) If a variable rate is used, it must 

be tied to an index or rate specifically 

agreed to between the lender and 

borrower in the loan instruments and 

the rate adjustments must be in 

accordance with normal practices of the 

lender for unguaranteed loans. Upon 

request, the lender must provide the 

Agency with copies of its written rate 

adjustment practices. 

(3) At the time of loan closing or loan 

restructuring, the interest rate on both 

the guaranteed portion and the 

unguaranteed portion of a fixed or 

variable rate OL or FO loan may not 

exceed the following, as applicable: 

(i) For lenders using risk-based 

pricing practices, the risk tier at least 

one tier lower (representing lower risk) 

than that borrower would receive 

without a guarantee. The lender must 

provide the Agency with copies of its 

written pricing practices, upon request. 

(ii) For lenders not using risk-based 

pricing practices, for variable rate loans 

or fixed rate loans with rates fixed for 

less than five years, 650 basis points (6.5 

percentage points) above the 3-month 

LIBOR. 

(iii) For lenders not using risk-based 

pricing practices, for loans with rates 

fixed for five or more years, 550 basis 

points (5.5 percentage points) above the 

5-year Treasury note rate. 

(4) In the event the 3-month LIBOR is 

below 2 percent, the maximum rates 

specified in paragraph (a)(3) of this 

section do not apply. In that case, at the 

time of loan closing or loan 

restructuring, the interest rate on both 

the guaranteed portion and the 

unguaranteed portion of an OL or FO 

loan may not exceed 750 basis points 

above the 3-month LIBOR for variable 

rate loans and 650 basis points above 

the 5-year Treasury rate for fixed rate 

loans. 

* * * * * 

■ 5. Amend § 762.150 by revising 

paragraph (g) to read as follows: 

§ 762.150 Interest assistance program. 

* * * * * 

(g) Rate of interest. The lender interest 

rate will be set according to 

§ 762.124(a). 

* * * * * 

Signed on February 12, 2013. 

Juan M. Garcia, 

Administrator, Farm Service Agency. 

[FR Doc. 2013–04930 Filed 3–1–13; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–05–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 25 

[Docket No. FAA–2012–1211; Special 

Conditions No. 25–486–SC] 

Special Conditions: Embraer S.A., 

Model EMB–550 Airplanes; Flight 

Envelope Protection: Pitch and Roll 

Limiting Functions 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), DOT. 

ACTION: Final special conditions. 

SUMMARY: These special conditions are 

issued for the Embraer S.A. Model 

EMB–550 airplane. This airplane will 

have a novel or unusual design feature 

associated with pitch and roll limiting 

functions, specifically an electronic 

flight control system which contains flyby-wire control laws, including 

envelope protections. 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: Effective Date: April 3, 2013. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joe 

Jacobsen, FAA, Airplane and Flight 

Crew Interface Branch, ANM–111, 

Transport Airplane Directorate, Aircraft 

Certification Service, 1601 Lind Avenue 

SW., Renton, Washington 98057–3356; 

telephone 425–227–2011; facsimile 

425–227–1149. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

On May 14, 2009, Embraer S.A. 

applied for a type certificate for their 

new Model EMB–550 airplane. The 

Model EMB–550 airplane is the first of 

a new family of jet airplanes designed 

for corporate flight, fractional, charter, 

and private owner operations. The 

aircraft has a conventional configuration 

with a low wing and T-tail empennage. 

The primary structure is metal with 

composite empennage and control 

surfaces. The Model EMB–550 airplane 

is designed for 8 passengers, with a 

maximum of 12 passengers. It is 

equipped with two Honeywell 


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14006 Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 42 / Monday, March 4, 2013 / Rules and Regulations 

HTF7500–E medium bypass ratio 

turbofan engines mounted on aft 

fuselage pylons. Each engine produces 

approximately 6,540 pounds of thrust 

for normal takeoff. The primary flight 

controls consist of hydraulically 

powered fly-by-wire elevators, aileron 

and rudder, controlled by the pilot or 

copilot sidestick. 

The airworthiness standards in Title 

14, Code of Federal Regulations (14 

CFR) part 25 do not specifically relate 

to flight characteristics associated with 

fixed attitude limits. Embraer S.A. will 

implement pitch and roll attitude 

protection functions through the normal 

modes of the electronic flight control 

system that will provide speed stability 

for high and low pitch angles. These 

functions also provide strong spiral 

stability for roll angles at high bank 

angles. In addition, bank angle limiting 

is introduced at speeds greater than 

VMO/MMO, up to VDF/MDF. 

Type Certification Basis 

Under the provisions of 14 CFR 21.17, 

Embraer S.A. must show that the Model 

EMB–550 airplane meets the applicable 

provisions of part 25, as amended by 

Amendments 25–1 through 25–127 

thereto. 

If the Administrator finds that the 

applicable airworthiness regulations 

(i.e., 14 CFR part 25) do not contain 

adequate or appropriate safety standards 

for the Model EMB–550 airplane 

because of a novel or unusual design 

feature, special conditions are 

prescribed under the provisions of 

§ 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 or similar novel 

or unusual design feature, the special 

conditions would also apply to the other 

model under § 21.101. 

In addition to the applicable 

airworthiness regulations and special 

conditions, the Model EMB–550 

airplane 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 and the FAA must issue a 

finding of regulatory adequacy under 

section 611 of Public Law 92–574, the 

‘‘Noise Control Act of 1972.’’ 

The FAA issues special conditions, as 

defined in 14 CFR 11.19, in accordance 

with § 11.38, and they become part of 

the type-certification basis under 

§ 21.17(a)(2). 

Novel or Unusual Design Features 

The Model EMB–550 airplane will 

incorporate the following novel or 

unusual design feature: An electronic 

flight control system which contains flyby-wire control laws, including 

envelope protections, which were not 

envisioned when part 25 was written. 

Discussion 

We expect that high thrust-to-weight 

ratios will provide the most critical 

cases for the positive pitch limit. A 

margin in pitch control must be 

available to enable speed control in 

maneuvers such as climb after takeoff 

and balked landing climb. The pitch 

limit must not impede likely 

maneuvering made necessary by 

collision avoidance efforts. A negative 

pitch limit must similarly not interfere 

with collision avoidance capability or 

with attaining and maintaining speeds 

near VMO/MMO for emergency descent. 

Spiral stability must not restrict 

attaining roll angles up to 65 degrees 

(i.e., an approximately 2.4g-level turn). 

This force must not require excessive 

pilot strength as stated in § 25.143(f). 

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. 

Discussion of Comments 

Notice of proposed special conditions 

No. 25–12–10–SC for the Embraer S.A. 

Model EMB–550 airplanes was 

published in the Federal Register on 

November 20, 2012 (77 FR 69569). We 

received one comment from Mr. 

Sokolow, who stated that these types of 

rules should be generic and not pertain 

to one model. He said that it splinters 

the regulations and can lead to abuse. 

We acknowledge Mr. Sokolow’s 

concerns about issuing regulations for 

individual models. In the case of new 

technlogy or new designs that are not 

covered in the regulations, the FAA 

issues special conditions that are 

applicable to only one model of 

airplane. The Embraer S.A. Model 

EMB–550 airplane will have a novel or 

unusual design feature associated with 

pitch and roll limiting functions, 

specifically an electronic flight control 

system which contains fly-by-wire 

control laws, including envelope 

protections. 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. 

We agree with the commenter that the 

FAA should issue general rulemaking to 

cover general issues that affect many 

types of airplanes. Currently, the FAA is 

tasking an Aviation Rulemaking 

Advisory Committee (ARAC) to address 

this and other similar requirements for 

electronic flight control systems (EFCS). 

The goal is to develop general rules that 

could be applied to all designs. In the 

meantime, however, we will continue to 

issue special conditions to ensure an 

adequate level of safety for specific 

EFCS design features. 

We are adopting the special 

conditions as proposed. 

Applicability 

As discussed above, these special 

conditions are applicable to the Model 

EMB–550 airplane. Should Embraer 

S.A. apply at a later date for a change 

to the type certificate to include another 

model incorporating the same novel or 

unusual design feature, the special 

conditions would apply to that model as 

well. 

Conclusion 

This action affects only certain novel 

or unusual design features on one model 

of airplanes. It is not a rule of general 

applicability. 

List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 25 

Aircraft, Aviation safety, Reporting 

and recordkeeping requirements. 

The authority citation for these 

special conditions is as follows: 

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 106(g), 40113, 44701, 

44702, 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 Embraer S.A. Model EMB–550 

airplanes. 

In addition to § 25.143, the following 

requirements apply: 

1. Flight Envelope Protection: Pitch 

and Roll Limiting Functions. 

a. The pitch limiting function must 

not impede normal maneuvering for 

pitch angles up to the maximum 

required for normal maneuvering, 

including a normal all-engines operating 

takeoff, plus a suitable margin to allow 

for satisfactory speed control. 

b. The pitch and roll limiting 

functions must not restrict or prevent 

attaining pitch attitudes necessary for 

emergency maneuvering or roll angles 

up to 66 degrees with flaps up, or 60 

degrees with flaps down. Spiral 


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Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 42 / Monday, March 4, 2013 / Rules and Regulations 14007 

stability, which is introduced above 33 

degrees roll angle, must not require 

excessive pilot strength to achieve these 

roll angles. Other protections, which 

further limit the roll capability under 

certain extreme angle of attack or 

attitude or high speed conditions, are 

acceptable, as long as they allow at least 

45 degrees of roll capability. 

c. A lower limit of roll is acceptable 

beyond the overspeed warning if it is 

possible to recover the aircraft to the 

normal flight envelope without undue 

difficulty or delay. 

Issued in Renton, Washington, on February 

26, 2013. 

Ali Bahrami, 

Manager, Transport Airplane Directorate, 

Aircraft Certification Service. 

[FR Doc. 2013–04855 Filed 3–1–13; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 25 

[Docket No. FAA–2012–1292; Special 

Conditions No. 25–485–SC] 

Special Conditions: Embraer S.A., 

Model EMB–550 Airplanes; Electrical/ 

Electronic Equipment Bay Fire 

Detection and Smoke Penetration 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), DOT. 

ACTION: Final special conditions. 

SUMMARY: These special conditions are 

issued for the Embraer S.A. Model 

EMB–550 airplane. This airplane will 

have novel or unusual design features, 

specifically distributed electrical and 

electronic equipment bays in 

pressurized areas of the airplane. Older 

transport category airplane electrical/ 

electronic equipment bay installations 

are located in the lower lobe where the 

flight crew could determine the origin of 

smoke or fire by a straightforward 

airplane flight manual procedure. In 

distributed electrical/electronic bay 

installations it is not as straightforward. 

The FAA has no requirement for smoke 

and/or fire detection in the electrical/ 

electronic equipment bays. To ensure 

effective mitigation of fires, the FAA 

proposes these special conditions. 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: Effective April 3, 2013. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Robert C. Jones, FAA, Propulsion and 

Mechanical Systems Branch, ANM–112, 

Transport Airplane Directorate, Aircraft 

Certification Service, 1601 Lind Avenue 

SW., Renton, Washington 98057–3356; 

telephone 425–227–1234; facsimile 

425–227–1149. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

On May 14, 2009, Embraer S.A. 

applied for a type certificate for their 

new Model EMB–550 airplane. The 

Model EMB–550 airplane is the first of 

a new family of jet airplanes designed 

for corporate flight, fractional, charter, 

and private owner operations. The 

airplane has a conventional 

configuration with a low wing and T-tail 

empennage. The primary structure is 

metal with composite empennage and 

control surfaces. The Model EMB–550 

airplane is designed for 8 passengers, 

with a maximum of 12 passengers. It is 

equipped with two Honeywell 

HTF7500–E medium bypass ratio 

turbofan engines mounted on aft 

fuselage pylons. Each engine produces 

approximately 6,540 pounds of thrust 

for normal takeoff. The primary flight 

controls consist of hydraulically 

powered fly-by-wire elevators, aileron 

and rudder, controlled by the pilot or 

copilot sidestick. 

The Model EMB–550 airplane has 

electrical/electronic equipment bays 

distributed throughout the airplane; 

three of them are in the pressurized 

area. The current airworthiness 

requirements do not contain adequate or 

appropriate safety standards regarding 

smoke/fire detection and protection 

against penetration of hazardous 

quantities of smoke from equipment 

bays into occupied areas of the airplane 

for this type of airplane configuration. 

Type Certification Basis 

Under the provisions of Title 14, Code 

of Federal Regulations (14 CFR) 21.17, 

Embraer S.A. must show that the Model 

EMB–550 airplane meets the applicable 

provisions of part 25, as amended by 

Amendments 25–1 through 25–127 

thereto. 

If the Administrator finds that the 

applicable airworthiness regulations 

(i.e., 14 CFR part 25) do not contain 

adequate or appropriate safety standards 

for the Model EMB–550 airplane 

because of a novel or unusual design 

feature, special conditions are 

prescribed under the provisions of 

§ 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 or similar novel 

or unusual design feature, the special 

conditions would also apply to the other 

model under § 21.101. 

In addition to the applicable 

airworthiness regulations and special 

conditions, the Model EMB–550 

airplane 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 and the FAA must issue a 

finding of regulatory adequacy under 

section 611 of Public Law 92–574, the 

‘‘Noise Control Act of 1972.’’ 

The FAA issues special conditions, as 

defined in 14 CFR 11.19, in accordance 

with § 11.38, and they become part of 

the type-certification basis under 

§ 21.17(a)(2). 

Novel or Unusual Design Features 

The Model EMB–550 airplane will 

incorporate the following novel or 

unusual design features: Distributed 

electrical and electronic equipment bays 

that were not envisioned at the time this 

rule was made. 

Discussion 

In general, smoke and fire detection 

systems are designed to: 

• Automatically shut off power to the 

affected equipment, 

• If necessary, reconfigure the 

environmental control systems to 

control any smoke resulting from a fire 

or overheat condition, and 

• Alert the flight crew to the 

existence of the fire. 

Most airplanes certified under part 25 

have one or two electrical equipment 

bays located in the lower lobe, adjacent 

to pressure regulator/outflow valves or 

vents. If a fire occurs in an electrical 

equipment bay, any smoke is drawn 

toward the outflow valves or vents and 

is discharged from the airplane without 

entering occupied areas. In the event of 

a smoke or fire in one of the electrical 

equipment bays, the procedures to 

isolate the bay on some airplanes 

requires the flight crew to use trial and 

error to determine whether or not the 

source is in a particular electrical 

equipment bay. However, with this 

approach, the flight crew does not know 

where the fire or smoke is because it is 

difficult to identify the source, 

especially during changes of phases of 

flight (e.g., climbing or descending) or 

system transients (e.g., changes in the 

airflow from the environmental control 

system). 

This trial-and-error approach may be 

acceptable for aircraft with no more 


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