Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 216 / Wednesday, November 7, 2012 / Proposed Rules 66771 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 39 

[Docket No. FAA–2012–1100; Directorate 

Identifier 2012–NE–29–AD] 

RIN 2120–AA64 

Airworthiness Directives; Rolls-Royce 

Deutschland Ltd & Co KG Turbofan 

Engines 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking 

(NPRM). 

SUMMARY: We propose to adopt a new 

airworthiness directive (AD) for certain 

Rolls-Royce Deutschland Ltd & Co KG 

(RRD) BR700–710 series turbofan 

engines. This proposed AD was 

prompted by service experience that 

demonstrated premature wear of the 

splined coupling on the fuel pump. This 

proposed AD would require 

replacement of the affected fuel pump 

splined couplings. We are proposing 

this AD to prevent failure of the engine 

and loss of the airplane. 

DATES: We must receive comments on 

this proposed AD by January 7, 2013. 

ADDRESSES: You may send comments by 

any of the following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

http://www.regulations.gov and follow 

the instructions for sending your 

comments electronically. 

• Mail: Docket Management Facility, 

U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue SE., West Building 

Ground Floor, Room W12–140, 

Washington, DC 20590–0001. 

• Hand Delivery: Deliver to Mail 

address above between 9 a.m. and 5 

p.m., Monday through Friday, except 

Federal holidays. 

• Fax: (202) 493–2251. 

For service information identified in 

this proposed AD, contact Rolls-Royce 

Deutschland Ltd & Co KG, Eschenweg 

11, Dahlewitz, 15827 BlankenfeldeMahlow, Germany; telephone: 49 0 33– 

7086–1883; fax: 49 0 33–7086–3276. 

You may review copies of the 

referenced service information at the 

FAA, Engine & Propeller Directorate, 12 

New England Executive Park, 

Burlington, MA. For information on the 

availability of this material at the FAA, 

call 781–238–7125. 

Examining the AD Docket 

You may examine the AD docket on 

the Internet at http:// 

www.regulations.gov; or in person at the 

Docket Operations office between 9 a.m. 

and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 

except Federal holidays. The AD docket 

contains this proposed AD, the 

regulatory evaluation, any comments 

received, and other information. The 

street address for the Docket Operations 

office (phone: (800) 647–5527) is the 

same as the Mail address provided in 

the ADDRESSES section. Comments will 

be available in the AD docket shortly 

after receipt. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Frederick Zink, Aerospace Engineer, 

Engine Certification Office, FAA, Engine 

& Propeller Directorate, 12 New England 

Executive Park, Burlington, MA 01803; 

email: frederick.zink@faa.gov; phone: 

781–238–7779; fax: 781–238–7199. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Comments Invited 

We invite you to send any written 

relevant data, views, or arguments about 

this proposed AD. Send your comments 

to an address listed under the 

ADDRESSES section. Include ‘‘Docket No. 

FAA–2012–1100; Directorate Identifier 

2012–NE–29–AD’’ at the beginning of 

your comments. We specifically invite 

comments on the overall regulatory, 

economic, environmental, and energy 

aspects of this proposed AD. We will 

consider all comments received by the 

closing date and may amend this 

proposed AD based on those comments. 

We will post all comments we 

receive, without change, to http:// 

www.regulations.gov, including any 

personal information you provide. We 

will also post a report summarizing each 

substantive verbal contact with FAA 

personnel concerning this proposed AD. 

Using the search function of the Web 

site, anyone can find and read the 

comments in any of our dockets, 

including, if provided, the name of the 

individual who sent the comment (or 

signed the comment on behalf of an 

association, business, labor union, etc.). 

You may review the DOT’s complete 

Privacy Act Statement in the Federal 

Register published on April 11, 2000 

(65 FR 19477–78). 

Discussion 

The European Aviation Safety Agency 

(EASA), which is the Technical Agent 

for the Member States of the European 

Community, has issued EASA 

Airworthiness Directive No. 2012–0161, 

dated August 24, 2012 (referred to after 

this as ‘‘the MCAI’’), to correct an unsafe 

condition for the specified products. 

The MCAI states: 

In-service experience of RRD BR700–710 fuel 

pump installed on the rear face of the 

accessory gearbox identified premature wear 

of the splined coupling, which caused 

damage to the splined coupling. 

This condition, if not corrected, could lead 

to failure of engine fuel supply, likely 

resulting in an uncommanded in-flight 

shutdown and consequently reduced control 

of the aeroplane. 

You may obtain further information by 

examining the MCAI in the AD docket. 

Relevant Service Information 

RRD has issued Alert NonModification Service Bulletin SB– 

BR700–72–A900509, Revision 3, dated 

August 2, 2012. The actions described 

in this service information are intended 

to correct the unsafe condition 

identified in the MCAI. 

FAA’s Determination and Requirements 

of This Proposed AD 

This product has been approved by 

EASA and is approved for operation in 

the United States. Pursuant to our 

bilateral agreement with the European 

Community, EASA has notified us of 

the unsafe condition described in the 

MCAI and service information 

referenced above. We are proposing this 

AD because we evaluated all 

information provided by EASA and 

determined the unsafe condition exists 

and is likely to exist or develop on other 

products of the same type design. 

Costs of Compliance 

We estimate that this proposed AD 

would affect about 1,040 engines 

installed on airplanes of U.S. registry. 

We also estimate that it would take 

about 6 work-hours per engine to 

comply with this proposed AD. The 

average labor rate is $85 per work-hour. 

Required parts would cost about $1,035 

per engine. Based on these figures, we 

estimate the cost of this proposed AD to 

U.S. operators to be $1,606,800. 

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. 

We are 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 


pmangrum on DSK3VPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS-1
66772 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 216 / Wednesday, November 7, 2012 / Proposed Rules 

products identified in this rulemaking 

action. 

Regulatory Findings 

We 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. Is not a ‘‘significant rule’’ under the 

DOT Regulatory Policies and Procedures 

(44 FR 11034, February 26, 1979); 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. 

We prepared a regulatory evaluation 

of the estimated costs to comply with 

this proposed AD and placed it in the 

AD docket. 

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 

1. The authority citation for part 39 

continues to read as follows: 

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

§ 39.13 [Amended] 

2. The FAA amends § 39.13 by adding 

the following new AD: 

Rolls-Royce Deutschland Ltd & Co KG 

(Formerly Rolls-Royce Deutschland 

GmbH, and BMW Rolls-Royce plc): 

Docket No. FAA–2012–1100; Directorate 

Identifier 2012–NE–29–AD. 

(a) Comments Due Date 

We must receive comments by January 7, 

2013. 

(b) Affected Airworthiness Directives (ADs) 

None. 

(c) Applicability 

This AD applies to Rolls-Royce 

Deutschland Ltd & Co KG (RRD) BR700– 

710A1–10 and BR700–710A2–20 turbofan 

engines, all serial numbers, and BR700– 

710C4–11 turbofan engines that have either 

of the following hardware configuration 

standards engraved on the engine data plate: 

(1) standard 710C4–11, RRD Alert NonModification Service Bulletin (NMSB) SB– 

BR700–72–101466 standard not 

incorporated, or 

(2) standard 710C4–11/10, RRD Alert 

NMSB SB–BR700–72–101466 standard 

incorporated. 

(d) Reason 

This AD was prompted by service 

experience that demonstrated premature 

wear of the splined coupling on the fuel 

pump. We are issuing this AD to prevent 

failure of the engine and loss of the airplane. 

(e) Actions and Compliance 

Unless already done, do the following. 

(1) After the effective date of this AD, 

replace the fuel pump splined coupling as 

follows and every 4,000 hours time in service 

(TIS) thereafter: 

(i) If the engine has 3,750 hours TIS or 

more, within 250 hours TIS. 

(ii) If the engine has less than 3,750 hours 

TIS, before reaching 4,000 hours TIS. 

(2) If you replaced the engine fuel pump 

splined coupling before the effective date of 

this AD, replace the fuel pump splined 

coupling before reaching 4,000 hours TIS 

since last replacement, or before further 

flight, whichever comes later. 

(f) Installation Prohibition 

After the effective date of this AD, do not 

approve for return to service any engine with 

a fuel pump with an affected splined 

coupling that has accumulated 4,000 hours 

TIS, or any airplane with an engine with an 

affected fuel pump splined coupling installed 

that has accumulated 4,000 hours TIS. 

(g) Alternative Methods of Compliance 

(AMOCs) 

The Manager, Engine Certification Office, 

FAA, may approve AMOCs to this AD. Use 

the procedures found in 14 CFR 39.19 to 

make your request. 

(h) Related Information 

(1) For more information about this AD, 

contact Frederick Zink, Aerospace Engineer, 

Engine Certification Office, FAA, Engine & 

Propeller Directorate, 12 New England 

Executive Park, Burlington, MA 01803; 

email: frederick.zink@faa.gov; phone: 781– 

238–7779; fax: 781–238–7199. 

(2) Refer to MCAI Airworthiness Directive 

No. 2012–0161, dated August 24, 2012, and 

RRD Alert NMSB SB–BR700–72–A900509, 

Revision 3, dated August 2, 2012, for related 

information. 

(3) For service information identified in 

this AD, contact Rolls-Royce Deutschland Ltd 

& Co KG, Eschenweg 11, Dahlewitz, 15827 

Blankenfelde-Mahlow, Germany; telephone: 

49 0 33–7086–1883; fax: 49 0 33–7086–3276. 

You may review copies of the referenced 

service information at the FAA, Engine & 

Propeller Directorate, 12 New England 

Executive Park, Burlington, MA. For 

information on the availability of this 

material at the FAA, call 781–238–7125. 

Issued in Burlington, Massachusetts, on 

October 26, 2012. 

Colleen M. D’Alessandro, 

Assistant Manager, Engine & Propeller 

Directorate, Aircraft Certification Service. 

[FR Doc. 2012–27108 Filed 11–6–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 39 

[Docket No. FAA–2012–1158; Directorate 

Identifier 2011–NM–232–AD] 

RIN 2120–AA64 

Airworthiness Directives; Airbus 

Airplanes 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking 

(NPRM). 

SUMMARY: We propose to supersede an 

existing airworthiness directive (AD) 

that applies to all Airbus Model A300 

and A310 series airplanes; and Model 

A300 B4–600, B4–600R, and F4–600R 

series airplanes, and Model A300 C4– 

605R Variant F airplanes (collectively 

called A300–600 series airplanes). The 

existing AD currently requires revising 

the Airworthiness Limitations section of 

the Instructions for Continued 

Airworthiness to incorporate new and 

revised structural inspections and 

inspection intervals. Since we issued 

that AD, Airbus has revised certain ALI 

documents, which require more 

restrictive maintenance requirements 

and airworthiness limitations. This 

proposed AD would revise the 

maintenance program to incorporate the 

limitations section. We are proposing 

this AD to prevent fatigue cracking, 

damage, or corrosion in principal 

structural elements, which could result 

in reduced structural integrity of the 

airplane. 

DATES: We must receive comments on 

this proposed AD by December 24, 

2012. 

ADDRESSES: You may send comments by 

any of the following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

http://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– 


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