AIR-15-4029-E Exemption No. 16739

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION WASHINGTON, DC 20591

In the matter of the petition of

ISRAEL AEROSPACE INDUSTRIES LTD Regulatory Docket No. FAA-2015- 4012

for an exemption from § 45.13(a)(1) of Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations

DENIAL OF EXEMPTION

By letters dated August 13, 2015 and August 26, 2015, Ms. Tali Nir, Airworthiness & Certification, Israel Aerospace Industries, Lt d, (IAI), Ben Gurion International Airport, 7010000, Israel petitioned the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on behalf of IAI for an exemption from § 45.13(a)(1) of Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR). 1 The petition, if granted, would allow IAI to mark th e Gulfstream G150 and G280 model aircraft it builds without including the name of the builder on the aircraft identification plate.

The petitioner requests relief from the following regulation:

Section 45.13(a)(1) which prescribes that the identification required by § 45.11 must

include the builder’s name.

The petitioner supports its request with the following information:

The petitioner builds Gulfstream G150 and Gulfstream G280 aircraft under a licensing agreement with Gulfstream Aerospace LP (GALP), the type certificate holder for both aircraft. The petitioner further states that it builds these aircraft under a production certificate issued by the Civil Aviation Authority of Israel.

1 Although IAI submitted separate petitions for the Gulf stream G150 and the Gulfstream G280 aircraft, the agency has treated these petitions as a single petition and included a single summary in the Federal Register because the petitions are identical and the aircraft m odel identified in the petition makes no difference for the analysis. The petition regarding the Gulfstr eam G150 has been added to the docket.2

The petitioner states that it exports the aircraft to the United States after completing FAA aircraft registration and obtaining a standard airworthiness certificate.

The petitioner states that the FAA has recognized that the aircraft manufacturing industry has evolved into an expanding global environment. Major components of aircraft built by the petitioner are built in North America, Europe, and Asia. The petitioner further states, however, that due to geopolitical issues, the appearance of “IAI LTD” as the builder on the aircraft identification plate can have a negative impact on Gulfstream’s ability to market and sell aircraft in certain markets around the world. Thus, the petitioner seeks an exemption from § 45.13(a)(1) so that it may withhold its name from the identification plates for the Gulfstream aircraft it builds.

The petitioner asserts that the purpose of mentioning the builder on the aircraft identification plate is to provide operators and authorities a “point of contact” for any issues that might occur in service. The petitioner also asserts that, from the perspective of the operator and the authorities, Gulfstream is the contact for all issues related to the aircraft. Further, the petitioner states the FAA Type Certificate Data Sheets (TCDS) for

the Gulfstream G150 and Gulfstream G280 airc raft identify IAI as the manufacturer of the aircraft under licensing agreement with GALP.

Based on the forgoing, the petitioner concludes that the exemption, if granted, would not have an impact on aviation safety and “would not represent an issue of interest to the public.”

A summary of the petition was published in the Federal Register on November 27, 2015 (80 FR 74189). No comments were received.

The FAA’s analysis is as follows:

The FAA has reviewed the information provided by IAI and has concluded that granting this exemption would not provide a level of safety that is at least equal to that provided by the rule from which IAI seeks an exemption and is not in the public interest for the reasons described

below.

The petitioner seeks an exemption from § 45.13(a)(1), “Builder’s name” on the aircraft data plate for the Gulfstream model G150 and G280 aircraft that it builds under license agreement with GALP (an Israeli company that holds the type certificates for these aircraft). IAI exports

the G150 and G280 aircraft it builds to the United States under a standard airworthiness certificate in accordance with § 21.182(c). Secti on 45.11(a)(1) requires the manufacturer of an aircraft covered under § 21.182 to mark each aircraft by attaching an identification plate that includes information required by § 45.13(a). The information required by § 45.13(a) includes the aircraft builder’s name, model, builder’s serial number, type certificate number, if any, and production certificate number, if any as well as certain other aircraft engine information.3

The identification plate and the information contained therein provide the means by which the Agency can positively link a given aircraft with the proper documentation so that the continuing airworthiness history of that particul ar aircraft can be traced throughout its service

life. IAI asserts that the FAA can determine the builder through the type certificate (TC) holder. However, while GALP may have currently only licensed the data to one builder, it is free to license the data to multiple builders. Further, given that IAI does not hold a production certificate, the agency’s ability to identify the builder in this case is even further attenuated. This means that traceability to the builder from the TC holder cannot be assured without the builder’s name on the data plate and thus an exemption would not provide a level of safety at least equal to that provided by the rule.

Additionally, the petitioner has not provided any information that allows the agency to determine that an exemption would be in the public interest. IAI stated that due to geopolitical issues, the appearance of “IAI LTD” as the builder on the aircraft identification plate can have a negative impact on Gulfstream’s ability to market and sell aircraft in certain markets around the world. However, IAI further stated that an exemption would not be of any interest to the public and stated that it would represent a signi ficant benefit to Gulfstream and IAI in terms of market access and sales. Thus, the agency has determined that IAI has not provided any information to demonstrate that the exemption they are seeking would be in the public

interest.

The FAA’s Decision:

In consideration of the foregoing, I find that a grant of exemption would not be in the public interest. Therefore, under the authority provided by 49 U.S.C. 106(f), 40113 and 44701, which the FAA Administrator has delegated to me, I hereby deny Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd (IAI) an exemption from § 45.13(a)(1) of Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR)

to allow IAI to withhold the name of the aircra ft builder on the aircraft identification plate on

Gulfstream G150 and G280 model aircraft.

Issued in Washington, D.C., on May 25 2016.

/s/

Dorenda D. Baker

Director

Aircraft Certification Service