EASA AD No.: 2012

- 0264

- E

TE. CAP.0011 1

- 00 3 © European Aviation Safety Agency. All rights reserved. 1 / 2 Proprietary document. Copies are not controlled. Confirm revision status through the EASA

- Internet/Intranet. 

## EASA EMERGENCY AIRWORTHINESS DIRECTIVE

AD No

. : 2012 - 0264 - E

Date: 17 December 2012

Note: This Emergency 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 participate in the activities of EASA under Article 66 of that Regulation. This AD is issued in accordance with E U 748/2012 , Part 2 1

. A.3B. In accordance with EC 2042/2003 Annex I, Part M.A.301, the continuing airworthiness of an aircraft shall be ensured by accomplishing any applicable ADs. Consequently, no person may ope rate an aircraft to which an AD applies, except in accordance wi th 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]

. 

### Design Approval Holder’s Name: A IRBUS Type/Model designation(s): A318, A319, A320 and A321 aeroplanes

TCDS Number: EASA.A.064

F oreign AD: Not applicable Supersedure: None



### ATA
– Airplane Flight Manual
– Blocked Angle of Attack Sensor

– Operational Procedure

Manufacturer(s): Airbus (f orme r ly Airbus Industrie ) Applicability: Airbus A318

- 111, A318

- 112, A318

- 121, A318

- 122, A319

- 111, A319

- 112, A319

- 113, A319

- 114, A319

- 115, A319

- 131, A319

- 132, A319

- 133, A320

- 111, A320

- 211, A320

- 212, A320

- 214, A320

- 215, A320

- 216, A320

- 231, A320

- 232, A320

- 233, A321

- 111, A321

- 112, A321

- 131, A321

- 211, A321

- 212, A321

- 213, A321

- 231 and A321

- 232 aeroplane s , all manufacturer serial number s, if Airbus modification (mod.) 153213 or 153214 has been embodied in production, or Airbus Service Bulletin (SB) A320

- 34

- 1521 has been embodied in service

. Reason: An A330 aeroplane , equipped with Angle of Attack (AoA) sensors with conic plates installed, recently experienced blockage of all sensors during climb , leading to a utopilot disconnection and activation of the alpha protection (Alpha Prot) when Mach number was increased. Based on t he results of the subsequent a nalysis , it is s usp ected that these conic plates may have contributed to the event. Investigations are on

- going to determine what cause d th e blockage of these A o A sensors

. B lockage of two or three A o A sensors at the same angle may cause the A l pha Prot of the normal law to activate. Under normal flight conditions (in normal law), if the Alpha Prot activates and Mach number increases, the flight control laws order a pitch down of the aeroplane that the flight crew may not be able to counteract with a side stick deflection, even in the full backward position. This condition, if not corrected, could result in reduced control of the aeroplane. EASA issued Emergency AD 2012

- 0258

- E to address this potential unsafeEASA AD No.: 2012

- 0264

- E

TE. CAP.0011 1

- 00 3 © European Aviation Safety Agency. All rights reserved. 2 / 2 Proprietary document. Copies are not controlled. Confirm revision status through the EASA

- Internet/Intranet. condition on Airbus A330 and A340 aeroplanes. AoA conic plates of similar design are also installed on A320 family aeroplanes, and installation of these AoA sensor conic plates was required by EASA AD 2012

- 0236, making reference to Airbus SB A320

- 34

- 1521 for in

- service modification. This requirement has now been removed with revision 1 of that AD. To address this condition on A320 family aeroplanes , Airbus developed a n

“ AOA Blocked ” emergency procedure , published as a temporary revision (TR) of the Airplane Flight Manual (AFM) , to ensure that flight crews, in case of AoA sensors blockage, apply the applicable emergency procedure. For the reasons described above, this Emergency AD requires insertion into the AFM of the Airbus TR

. This AD is considered to be an interim measure and further AD action may follow.
Effective Date: 22 December 2012 Required Action(s) and Compliance Time(s): Required as indicated, unless accomplished previously: (1) Before next flight after the effective date of this AD, amend the applicable AFM to incorporate Airbus AFM A320 TR 286 “ AOA Blocked”, issue 1 .0, inform all flight crews and thereafter operate the aeroplane accordingly. (2) After modification of an aeroplane by r eplac ing A o A sensor conic plates with A o A sensor flat plates in accordance with Airbus approved aeroplane modification instructions , the operation al procedure as requ ired by para graph (1) of this AD is no longer applicable and shall be removed from the AFM of that aeroplane . Contact Airbus to obtain the necessary approved modification instructions.
Ref. Public ations: Airbus AFM A3 2 0 TR 286 “AOA Blocked” issue 1 .0 dated 17 December 2012. Note: A copy of th i s document is attached to the record of this AD in the EASA AD publication tool. The use of later approved revisions of th i s 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. The results of the safety assessment have indicated the need for immediate publication and notification, without the full public consultation process. 3. Enquiries regarding this AD should be referred to the Safety Information Section, Executive Directorate, EASA. E

- mail: ADs@easa.europa.eu

. 4. For any question concerning the technical content of the requirements in this AD, please contact: AIRBUS

– Airworthiness Office

– EIAS; Fax +33 5 61 93 44 51; E

- mail: account.airworth

- eas@airbus.com

.