7516 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 18 / Friday, January 29, 2021 / Proposed Rules 

The NRC may post additional 

materials related to this rulemaking 

activity to the Federal rulemaking 

website at www.regulations.gov under 

Docket ID NRC–2009–0196. These 

documents will inform the public of the 

current status of this activity and/or 

provide additional material for use at 

future public meetings. 

The Federal rulemaking website 

allows you to receive alerts when 

changes or additions occur in a docket 

folder. To subscribe: (1) Navigate to the 

docket folder (NRC–2009–0196); (2) 

click the ‘‘Sign up for Email Alerts’’ 

link; and (3) enter your email address 

and select how frequently you would 

like to receive emails (daily, weekly, or 

monthly). 

Dated: January 19, 2021. 

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. 

John R. Tappert, 

Director, Division of Rulemaking, 

Environmental and Financial Support, Office 

of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards. 

[FR Doc. 2021–01860 Filed 1–28–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7590–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 29 

[Docket No. FAA–2021–0065; Notice No. 29– 

054–SC] 

Special Conditions: Bell Textron Inc., 

Model 525 Helicopter; Fly-By-Wire 

(FBW) Flight Control System (FCS) 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of proposed special 

conditions. 

SUMMARY: This action proposes special 

conditions for the Bell Textron Inc. 

(Bell) Model 525 helicopter. This 

helicopter will have a novel or unusual 

design feature associated with a fly-bywire (FBW) flight control system (FCS). 

The applicable airworthiness 

regulations do not contain adequate or 

appropriate safety standards for this 

design feature. These proposed 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: Send comments on or before 

March 15, 2021. 

ADDRESSES: Send comments identified 

by Docket No. FAA–2021–0065 using 

any of the following methods: 

• Federal eRegulations Portal: Go to 

http://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. 

Privacy: 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 

it receives, without change, to http://

www.regulations.gov/, including any 

personal information the commenter 

provides. Using the search function of 

the docket website, anyone can find and 

read the electronic form of all comments 

received into any FAA docket, 

including the name of the individual 

sending the comment (or signing the 

comment for an association, business, 

labor union, etc.). DOT’s complete 

Privacy Act Statement can be found in 

the Federal Register published on April 

11, 2000 (65 FR 19477–19478). 

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 proposed 

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 proposed 

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 they will not be 

placed in the public docket of these 

proposed special conditions. 

Submissions containing CBI should be 

sent to John VanHoudt, FAA, Dynamic 

Systems Section, AIR–627, Technical 

Innovation Policy Branch, Policy and 

Innovation Division, Aircraft 

Certification Service, 10101 Hillwood 

Parkway, Fort Worth, TX 76177–98198; 

telephone and fax 817–222–5193; email 

John.G.Van.Houdt@FAA.Gov. Any 

commentary that the FAA receives 

which is not specifically designated as 

CBI will be placed in the public docket 

for this rulemaking. 

Docket: Background documents or 

comments received may be read at 

http://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: John 

VanHoudt, FAA, Dynamic Systems 

Section, AIR–627, Technical Innovation 

Policy Branch, Policy and Innovation 

Division, Aircraft Certification Service, 

10101 Hillwood Parkway, Fort Worth, 

TX 76177–98198; telephone and fax 

817–222–5193; email 

John.G.Van.Houdt@FAA.Gov. 

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–2021–0065; Notice No. 29–054– 

SC’’ at the beginning of your comments. 

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 and may amend these proposed 

special conditions because of those 

comments. 

Background 

On December 15, 2011, Bell applied 

for a type certificate for a new 14 CFR 

part 29 transport category helicopter 

designated as the Model 525. Bell 

applied for multiple extensions, with 

the most recent occurring on November 

12, 2020. The date of the updated type 

certification basis is December 31, 2016, 

based upon the applicant’s proposed 

type certificate issuance date of 

December 31, 2021. The Model 525 is a 

medium twin-engine rotorcraft. The 

design maximum takeoff weight is 

20,500 pounds, with a maximum 

capacity of 19 passengers and a crew of 

2. 

The Bell Model 525 helicopter will be 

equipped with a four axis full authority 

digital FBW FCS that provides for 

aircraft control through pilot input and 

coupled flight director modes. The 

design of the Bell Model 525 FBW 

controls, which provides no direct 

hydro-mechanical linkage between the 

primary cockpit flight controls or 

inceptors and the main and tail rotor 


khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 18 / Friday, January 29, 2021 / Proposed Rules 7517 

actuators, is a first for commercial 

rotorcraft use. Therefore, the regulations 

do not contain adequate or appropriate 

safety standards for this new design 

feature. 

The rotorcraft industry is producing 

new generations of helicopters, and 

gradually increasing size, speed, load 

capacity, and technical sophistication. 

In recent years, an accelerated trend has 

occurred using rotorcraft for a wide 

range of commercial and industrial 

applications. This has resulted in 

increased complexity of modern control 

systems and increased use of 

automation in flight control systems, 

including the implementation of 

advanced flight control systems such as 

FBW FCS. 

Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations 

(CFR), § 29.671(c), which provides 

requirements for transport category 

rotorcraft control systems, does not 

contain adequate or appropriate safety 

standards for this new design feature. 14 

CFR 29.671(c) requires, in part, a means 

to allow the pilot to determine that full 

control authority is available prior to 

flight. This command control authority 

is typically achieved by verifying 

movement of the control quadrant 

through an unassisted mechanical pilotinitiated manipulation of the primary 

flight controls prior to flight. Although 

this approach does not guarantee that 

100% maximum control movement of 

the flight controls has been achieved 

prior to flight, it has been deemed 

appropriate for mechanical flight 

control systems. 

Unlike traditional mechanical flight 

control systems, the FBW FCS reduces 

the opportunity for jamming of the flight 

controls due to mechanical bind, 

improper servo adjustment resulting 

from faulty maintenance, or presence of 

a foreign object in the control 

mechanism that will impair safety. This 

reduced exposure for jams is due to the 

replacement of the mechanical linkages 

between the primary cockpit flight 

controls or inceptors and the main and 

tail rotor actuators with digital signal 

processing wiring. However, the FBW 

FCS does increase the potential for 

latent failures or faults that could impair 

full control authority, unless a means 

exists to ensure the FBW FCS is fully 

functional and free of control authority 

impairment prior to flight. A FBW 

system may have the ability to verify 

full control authority without having to 

move the primary flight controls. 

Although part 29 does not contain 

adequate or appropriate safety standards 

for this novel or unusual design feature, 

14 CFR 25.671, amendment 25–23, 

provides these requirements for 

transport category airplanes. 

Accordingly, these proposed special 

conditions are based on § 25.671 to 

provide requirements for a FBW FCS on 

the Bell Model 525 helicopter. 14 CFR 

25.671(c) provides the same level of 

safety as that intended by § 29.671(c) 

when employing a FBW FCS by 

including requirements for jamming and 

failure analysis. The proposed special 

conditions would require a 

comprehensive safety analysis of the 

aircraft’s FBW FCS to include failures 

due to command logic (software), 

mechanical and electronic interfaces to 

other systems, jamming and 

maintenance. Therefore, in conjunction 

with § 29.671(a) and (b), the proposed 

special conditions incorporate 

provisions from § 25.671(c) to establish 

a level of safety equivalent to that 

established in the regulations. 

Type Certification Basis 

Under the provisions of 14 CFR 21.17, 

Bell must show that the Model 525 

helicopter meets the applicable 

provisions of part 29, as amended by 

Amendments 29 through 55 thereto. The 

Bell Model 525 certification basis date 

is December 31, 2016. 

If the Administrator finds that the 

applicable airworthiness regulations 

(i.e., 14 CFR part 29) do not contain 

adequate or appropriate safety standards 

for the Bell Model 525 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 Bell Model 525 

helicopter must comply with the the 

noise certification requirements of 14 

CFR part 36, and the FAA must issue a 

finding of regulatory adequacy under 

§ 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 Bell Model 525 helicopter will 

incorporate the following novel or 

unusual design features: A FBW FCS. 

This new design feature has no direct 

hydro-mechanical linkage between the 

primary cockpit flight controls or 

inceptors and the main and tail rotor 

actuators, thereby eliminating the more 

complex elements of either a manual 

movement of the controls by the pilot, 

or another manual means. 

Discussion 

The proposed special conditions 

would require that a means be available 

to show full control authority for all 

powered control systems. 

The proposed 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 Bell 

Model 525 helicopter. Should Bell 

apply at a later date for a change to the 

type certificate to include aother model 

incorporating 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 the 

Bell Model 525 helicopter. It is not a 

rule of general applicability. 

List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 29 

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, 44704. 

The Proposed Special Conditions 

Accordingly, the Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA) proposes the 

following special conditions in lieu of 

§ 29.671(c) as part of the type 

certification basis for the Bell Textron 

Inc. Model 525 helicopter: 

The rotorcraft must be shown by 

analysis, tests, or both, to be capable of 

continued safe flight and landing after 

any of the following failures or jamming 

in the flight control system within the 

normal flight envelope, without 

requiring exceptional piloting skill or 

strength. Probable failures must have 

only minor effects. 

(1) Any single failure not shown to be 

extremely improbable, excluding 

jamming. 

(2) Any combination of failures not 

shown to be extremely improbable, 

excluding jamming. 

(3) Any jam in a control position 

normally encountered during hover, 

takeoff, climb, cruise, normal turns, 


khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with PROPOSALS
7518 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 18 / Friday, January 29, 2021 / Proposed Rules 

1 16 U.S.C. 824o. 

2 18 CFR 39.3(c). 

3 16 U.S.C. 824o; (on July 20, 2006, the 

Commission certified NERC as the ERO for the 

continental United States under FPA section 

215(c)). North American Electric Reliability Corp., 

116 FERC ¶ 61,062, order on reh’g and compliance, 

117 FERC ¶ 61,126 (2006), order on compliance, 

118 FERC ¶ 61,030, order on compliance, 118 FERC 

¶ 61,190, order on reh’g, 119 FERC ¶ 61,046 (2007), 

aff’d sub nom. Alcoa Inc. v. FERC, 564 F.3d 1342 

(D.C. Cir. 2009). 

4 Id. section 824o(c). 

5Rules Concerning Certification of the Electric 

Reliability Organization; and Procedures for the 

Establishment, Approval, and Enforcement of 

Electric Reliability Standards, Order No. 672, 71 FR 

8662 (Feb. 17, 2006), 114 FERC ¶ 61,104, at P 186, 

order on reh’g, Order No. 672–A, 114 FERC ¶ 61,328 

(2006). 

descent, and landing, unless the jam is 

shown to be extremely improbable or 

can be alleviated. 

Issued in Fort Worth, Texas. 

Jorge Castillo, 

Manager, Strategic Policy Rotorcraft Section, 

Policy and Innovation Division, Aircraft 

Certification Service. 

[FR Doc. 2021–01958 Filed 1–28–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 

Federal Energy Regulatory 

Commission 

18 CFR Part 39 

[Docket No. RM21–12–000] 

Revisions to Regulations on Electric 

Reliability Organization Performance 

Assessments 

AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory 

Commission, Department of Energy. 

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking. 

SUMMARY: The Federal Energy 

Regulatory Commission (Commission) 

proposes to amend the Commission’s 

regulations to require the Commissioncertified Electric Reliability 

Organization to submit assessments of 

its performance every three years 

instead of the current period of every 

five years. The Commission also 

proposes to add to the Commission’s 

regulations a requirement for the 

Electric Reliability Organization to 

include in its performance assessment a 

detailed discussion of any areas of the 

Electric Reliability Organization’s 

responsibilities and activities, or a 

Regional Entity’s delegated functions, 

beyond those required by the 

Commission’s regulations, that the 

Commission has identified at least 90 

days prior to the expected performance 

assessment submission date. Finally, the 

Commission proposes formalizing the 

method for the Electric Reliability 

Organization and Regional Entities to 

receive and respond to 

recommendations by the users, owners, 

and operators of the Bulk-Power 

System, and other interested parties for 

improvement of the Electric Reliability 

Organization’s operations, activities, 

oversight and procedures. 

DATES: Comments are due March 1, 

2021. 

ADDRESSES: Comments, identified by 

docket number, may be filed 

electronically at http://www.ferc.gov in 

acceptable native applications and 

print-to-PDF, but not in scanned or 

picture format. For those unable to file 

electronically, comments may be filed 

by mail to: Federal Energy Regulatory 

Commission, Secretary of the 

Commission, 888 First Street NE, 

Washington, DC 20426. Hand-delivered 

comments must be delivered to: Federal 

Energy Regulatory Commission, 12225 

Wilkins Avenue, Rockville, Maryland 

20852. The Comment Procedures 

Section of this document contains more 

detailed filing procedures. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Leigh Anne Faugust (Legal Information), 

Office of the General Counsel, Federal 

Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 

First Street NE, Washington, DC 20426, 

Telephone: (202) 502–6396. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

1. Pursuant to section 215 of the 

Federal Power Act (FPA),1 the 

Commission proposes to amend 

§ 39.3(c) of the Commission’s 

regulations to require the Commissioncertified Electric Reliability 

Organization (ERO) to submit 

assessments of its performance every 

three years instead of the current period 

of every five years.2 We believe that the 

proposed amendment will provide 

better continuity in our review of the 

ERO’s operations, activities, oversight, 

procedures, and evaluation of the 

effectiveness of each Regional Entity in 

the performance of delegated functions. 

We also believe the proposed shorter 

performance assessment cycle will 

provide an opportunity to identify 

potential improvements with regards to 

ERO performance in a more timely 

fashion, allow for changes to be made in 

a more timely manner, and improve the 

efficiency of the overall performance 

assessment process. 

2. Also, pursuant to section 215 of the 

FPA, we propose to add paragraph (iv) 

to § 39.3(c)(1) of the Commission’s 

regulations to require the Commissioncertified ERO to include in its 

performance assessments a detailed 

discussion of any areas of the ERO’s 

responsibilities and activities, or the 

Regional Entities’ delegated functions, 

beyond those required by § 39.3(c)(1)(i), 

(ii), and (iii), that the Commission 

identifies for inclusion at least 90 days 

prior to the expected performance 

assessment submission date. 

3. Finally, we propose to amend 

§ 39.3(c)(1)(ii) of the Commission’s 

regulations to require the ERO to solicit 

via a formal public comment period 

recommendations by the users, owners, 

and operators of the Bulk-Power 

System, and other interested parties for 

improvement of the ERO’s operations, 

activities, oversight and procedures. 

I. Background 

A. Section 215 of the FPA 

4. Section 215 of the FPA requires the 

Commission to issue regulations that, 

among other things, provide for the 

certification of an entity as the ERO if 

it meets certain criteria.3 Specifically, 

FPA section 215(c) establishes that an 

ERO candidate must have the ability to 

develop and enforce mandatory 

Reliability Standards that provide for an 

adequate level of reliability of the BulkPower System.4 The statute also 

requires that an ERO candidate have 

established rules that: (1) Assure 

independence, while assuring fair 

stakeholder representation and balanced 

decision-making; (2) equitably allocate 

reasonable dues, fees, and other charges; 

(3) provide fair and impartial 

procedures for enforcing Reliability 

Standards through imposition of 

penalties; (4) provide reasonable notice 

and opportunity for public comment, 

due process, and balance in developing 

Reliability Standards and otherwise 

exercising its duties; and (5) provide 

appropriate steps to gain recognition in 

Canada and Mexico. 

5. FPA section 215(e)(4) provides that 

the ERO may delegate authority to a 

Regional Entity for the purpose of 

proposing regional Reliability Standards 

and enforcing Reliability Standards. 

Regional Entities must meet the same 

statutory criteria as those required for 

Commission certification of an ERO, 

except that more flexibility is allowed in 

the composition of a Regional Entity 

board of directors. The Commission 

must approve a delegation agreement 

between the ERO and a Regional Entity, 

and the Commission is authorized to 

modify such delegation. 

B. Order No. 672 

6. On February 3, 2006, the 

Commission issued Order No. 672, 

which amended the Commission’s 

regulations to implement the 

requirements of FPA section 215.5 In 

Order No. 672, the Commission 


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