EASA AD No : 2010-0255

EASA Form 110 Page 1/2 

## EASA AIRWORTHINESS DIRECTIVE

AD No.: 2010-0255

Date: 06 December 2010

Note: This Airworthiness Directive (AD) is issued by EASA, acting in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 216/2008 on behalf of the European Community, its Member States and of the European third countries that parti cipate in the activities of EASA under Article 66 of that Regulation.
This AD is issued in accordance with EC 1702/2003, Part 21A.3B. In accordance with EC 2042/2003 Annex I, Part M.A.301, the continuing airworthiness of an aircraft shall be ens ured by accomplishing any applicable ADs. Consequently, no person may operate an aircraft to which an AD applies, except in a ccordance with the requirements of that AD unless otherwise specified by the Agency [EC 2042/2003 Annex I, Part M.A.303] or agreed with the Authority of the State of Registry [EC 216/2008, Article 14(4) exemption]. 

### Type Approval Holder’s Name :
AIRBUS Type/Model designation(s) :
A340-600 aeroplanes

TCDS Number : EASA.A.015

Foreign AD : Not applicable

Supersedure : None



### ATA 26 Fire Protection – Fire Extinguishing System – Modification

Manufacturer(s): Airbus (formerly Airbus Industrie)

Applicability: Airbus A340 aeroplanes, m odels -642 and -643, all manufacturer serial numbers, on which Airbus modification (mod.) 47090 has been embodied in production, and except those on which Airbus mod. 51065 has been embodied in production.
Reason: During the qualification test ca mpaign of the prototype Flow Metering Compact Unit (FMCU) Part Number (P/N) QA07907-03, partial blockage of the water absorbing filter elem ent P/N QA06123 was observed several times. The blockage was created by carbon debris from the cartridge and from the burst disc of the Halon bottle. This water absorbing filter element is part of the FMCU, which are part of the Lower Deck Cargo Compartment (LDCC) fire extinguisher system used in some A340-600 aeroplanes. Blockage of the water absorbing filter element could lead to reduction of the Halon outflow, leading to incapacity to maintain fire extinguishing agent concentration. Combined with fire, this condition could result in an uncontrolled fire in the affected compartment, which would constitute an unsafe condition. To avoid water absorbing filter elem ent blockage, this AD requires to convert the fire extinguishing system from the three-bottles-system with 4 FMCU into a two-bottles-system with 2 Flow Metering Systems (FMS) equipped with upgraded water absorbing filter elements

.EASA AD No : 2010-0255

EASA Form 110 Page 2/2 Effective Date: 20 December 2010

Required action(s) and Compliance Time(s): Required as indicated, unless already accomplished: Within 18 months after the effective date of this AD, modify the fire extinguishing system, from a three bottles solution with 4 FMCU into a two bottles solution with 2 FMS equipped with upgraded water absorbing filter elements, in accordance with the inst ructions of Airbus Service Bulletin (SB) A340-26-5020.

Ref. Publications: Airbus Service Bulle tin A340-26-5020 at Original issue. The use of later approved revisions of this document is acceptable for compliance with the requirements of this AD.

Remarks: 1. If requested and appropriately substantiated, EASA can approve Alternative Methods of Compliance for this AD. 2. This AD was posted on 11 October 2010 as PAD 10-109 for consultation until 08 November 2010. No comments were received during the consultation period. 3. Enquiries regarding this AD should be referred to the Airworthiness Directives, Safety Management & Re search Section, Certification Directorate, EASA. E-mail: ADs@easa.europa.eu

. 4. For any question concerning the te chnical content of the requirements in this AD, please contact: AIRBUS – Airworthiness Office – EAL. Fax: +33 5 61 93 45 80 or + 33 5 61 93 44 51. E-mail: airworthiness.A330-A340@airbus.com

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