Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 50 / Thursday, March 15, 2007 / Proposed Rules 12131 

Issued in Renton, Washington, on March 7, 

2007. 

Ali Bahrami, 

Manager, Transport Airplane Directorate, 

Aircraft Certification Service. 

[FR Doc. E7–4741 Filed 3–14–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 39 

[Docket No. FAA–2007–27212; Directorate 

Identifier 2007–CE–011–AD] 

RIN 2120–AA64 

Airworthiness Directives; Air Tractor, 

Inc. Models AT–602, AT–802, and AT–

802A Airplanes 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), Department of 

Transportation (DOT). 

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking 

(NPRM). 

SUMMARY: We propose to supersede 

Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2006–22–

08, which applies to all Air Tractor, Inc. 

(Air Tractor) Models AT–602, AT–802, 

and AT–802A airplanes. AD 2006–22–

08 currently requires you to repetitively 

inspect the engine mount for any cracks, 

repair or replace any cracked engine 

mount, and report any cracks found to 

the FAA. Since we issued AD 2006–22–

08, the FAA has received reports of two 

Model AT–802A airplanes with cracked 

engine mounts (at 2,815 hours time-inservice (TIS) and 1,900 hours TIS) 

below the initial compliance time in AD 

2006–22–08. The FAA has determined 

that an initial inspection at 1,300 hours 

TIS is required instead of 4,000 hours 

TIS required by AD 2006–22–08. 

Consequently, this proposed AD would 

retain the actions of AD 2006–22–08 

while requiring the initial inspection at 

1,300 hours TIS. We are proposing this 

AD to detect and correct cracks in the 

engine mount, which could result in 

failure of the engine mount. Such failure 

could lead to separation of the engine 

from the airplane. 

DATES: We must receive comments on 

this proposed AD by May 14, 2007. 

ADDRESSES: Use one of the following 

addresses to comment on this proposed 

AD: 

• DOT Docket Web site: Go to 

http://dms.dot.gov and follow the 

instructions for sending your comments 

electronically. 

• Mail: Docket Management Facility; 

U.S. Department of Transportation, 400 

Seventh Street, SW., Nassif Building, 

Room PL–401, Washington, DC 20590–

0001. 

• Fax: (202) 493–2251. 

• Hand Delivery: Room PL–401 on 

the plaza level of the Nassif Building, 

400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, 

DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday 

through Friday, except Federal holidays. 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

instructions for submitting comments. 

For service information identified in 

this proposed AD, contact Air Tractor, 

Inc., P.O. Box 485, Olney, Texas 76374; 

telephone: (940) 564–5616; facsimile: 

(940) 564–5612. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Andrew McAnaul, Aerospace Engineer, 

ASW–150 (c/o MIDO–43), 10100 

Reunion Place, Suite 650, San Antonio, 

Texas 78216; telephone: (210) 308–

3365; facsimile: (210) 308–3370. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Comments Invited 

We invite you to send any written 

relevant data, views, or arguments 

regarding this proposed AD. Send your 

comments to an address listed under the 

ADDRESSES section. Include the docket 

number, ‘‘FAA–2007–27212; Directorate 

Identifier 2007–CE–011–AD’’ at the 

beginning of your comments. We 

specifically invite comments on the 

overall regulatory, economic, 

environmental, and energy aspects of 

the proposed AD. We will consider all 

comments received by the closing date 

and may amend the proposed AD in 

light of those comments. 

We will post all comments we 

receive, without change, to http:// 

dms.dot.gov, including any personal 

information you provide. We will also 

post a report summarizing each 

substantive verbal contact we receive 

concerning this proposed AD. 

Discussion 

Two reports from Air Tractor of 

cracked engine mounts resulting from 

fatigue caused us to issue AD 2006–22–

08, Amendment 39–14805 (71 FR 

62910, October 27, 2006). AD 2006–22–

08 currently requires the following on 

all Air Tractor Models AT–602, AT–802, 

and AT–802A airplanes: 

• Inspect (initially and repetitively) 

the engine mount for any cracks; 

• Repair or replace any cracked 

engine mount; and 

• Report any cracks found to the 

FAA. 

Since we issued AD 2006–22–08, the 

FAA has received reports of two Model 

AT–802A airplanes with cracked engine 

mounts (at 2,815 hours TIS and 1,900 

hours TIS) below the initial compliance 

time in AD 2006–22–08. The FAA has 

determined that an initial inspection at 

1,300 hours TIS is required instead of 

4,000 hours TIS as required by AD 

2006–22–08. 

This condition, if not corrected, could 

result in failure of the engine mount. 

Such failure could lead to separation of 

the engine from the airplane. 

Relevant Service Information 

We have reviewed Snow Engineering 

Co. Service Letter #253, dated December 

12, 2005, revised January 22, 2007. 

The service information describes 

procedures for performing a visual 

inspection for cracks of the engine 

mount and requesting a repair scheme 

from the manufacturer. 

Snow Engineering Co. has a licensing 

agreement with Air Tractor that allows 

them to produce technical data to use 

for Air Tractor products. 

FAA’s Determination and Requirements 

of the Proposed AD 

We are proposing this AD because we 

evaluated all information and 

determined the unsafe condition 

described previously is likely to exist or 

develop on other products of the same 

type design. This proposed AD would 

supersede AD 2006–22–08 with a new 

AD that would require you to 

repetitively inspect the engine mount 

for any cracks, repair or replace any 

cracked engine mount, and report any 

cracks found to the FAA. To repair a 

cracked engine mount, you would 

obtain an FAA-approved repair scheme 

from Air Tractor following the 

instructions in the service information. 

This proposed AD would require you 

to use the service information described 

previously to perform these actions. 

Costs of Compliance 

We estimate that this AD affects 368 

airplanes in the U.S. registry. 

We estimate the following costs to do 

each required inspection: 


rmajette on PROD1PC67 with PROPOSALS
12132 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 50 / Thursday, March 15, 2007 / Proposed Rules 

Labor cost Parts cost 

Total cost per 

airplane per 

inspection 

Total cost on 

U.S. operators 

for initial 

inspection 

1.5 work-hours × $80 per hour = $120 .......................................................................................... Not Applicable.$120 $44,160 

We have no way of determining the 

number of airplanes that may need 

replacement of the engine mount. We 

estimate the following costs to do the 

replacement: 

Labor cost Parts cost 

Total cost per 

airplane per 

replacement 

81 work-hours × $80 per hour = $6,480 ................................................................................................................. $3,982 $10,462 

Any required ‘‘upon-condition’’

repairs would vary depending upon the 

damage found during each inspection. 

Based on this, we have no way of 

determining the potential repair costs 

for each airplane. 

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 

products identified in this rulemaking 

action. 

Regulatory Findings 

We have 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 that the 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. 

Examining the AD Docket 

You may examine the AD docket that 

contains the proposed AD, the 

regulatory evaluation, any comments 

received, and other information on the 

Internet at http://dms.dot.gov; or in 

person at the Docket Management 

Facility between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., 

Monday through Friday, except Federal 

holidays. The Docket Office (telephone 

(800) 647–5227) is located at the street 

address stated in the ADDRESSES section. 

Comments will be available in the AD 

docket shortly after receipt. 

List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 39 

Air transportation, Aircraft, Aviation 

safety, 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 

removing Airworthiness Directive (AD) 

2006–22–08, Amendment 39–14805 (71 

FR 62910, October 27, 2006), and 

adding the following new AD: 

Air Tractor, Inc: Docket No. FAA–2007–

27212; Directorate Identifier 2007–CE–

011–AD. 

Comments Due Date 

(a) We must receive comments on this 

airworthiness directive (AD) action by May 

14, 2007. 

Affected ADs 

(b) This AD supersedes AD 2006–22–08, 

Amendment 39–14805. 

Applicability 

(c) This AD affects all Models AT–602, 

AT–802, and AT–802A airplanes, all serial 

numbers, that are certificated in any category. 

Unsafe Condition 

(d) This AD results from reports of two 

Model AT–802A airplanes with cracked 

engine mounts (at 2,815 hours time-inservice (TIS) and 1,900 hours TIS) below the 

initial compliance time in AD 2006–22–08. 

The FAA has determined that an initial 

inspection at 1,300 hours TIS is required 

instead of 4,000 hours TIS as required by AD 

2006–22–08. We are issuing this AD to detect 

and correct cracks in the engine mount, 

which could result in failure of the engine 

mount. Such failure could lead to separation 

of the engine from the airplane. 

Compliance 

(e) To address this problem, you must do 

the following, unless already done: 


rmajette on PROD1PC67 with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 50 / Thursday, March 15, 2007 / Proposed Rules 12133 

Actions Compliance Procedures 

(1) Visually inspect the engine mount for any 

cracks.

Initially inspect upon accumulating 1,300 

hours TIS or within the next 100 hours TIS 

after the effective date of this AD, whichever occurs later, unless already done. 

Thereafter, inspect repetitively at intervals 

not to exceed 300 hours TIS.

Follow Snow Engineering Co. Service Letter 

#253, dated December 12, 2005, revised 

January 22, 2007. 

(2) If you find any crack damage, do the following: 

(i) Obtain an FAA-approved repair scheme 

or replacement procedure from the manufacturer; and 

(ii) Repair following the FAA-approved repair scheme or replace the engine mount 

with a new engine mount following the 

replacement procedure. 

Before further flight after any inspection required by paragraph (e)(1) of this AD where 

crack damage is found. If you repair the 

cracked engine mount, then continue to reinspect at intervals not to exceed 300 hours 

TIS, unless the repair scheme states differently. If you replace the engine mount, 

then initially inspect upon accumulating 

1,300 hours TIS and repetitively at intervals 

not to exceed 300 hours TIS.

For obtaining a repair scheme or replacement 

procedure: Contact Air Tractor Inc., P.O. 

Box 485, Olney, Texas 76374; telephone: 

(940) 564–5616; facsimile: (940) 564–5612. 

(3) Report any cracks that you find to the FAA 

at the address specified in paragraph (f) of 

this AD. Include in your report: 

(i) Airplane serial number; 

(ii) Airplane hours TIS and engine mount 

hours TIS; 

(iii) Crack location(s) and size(s); 

(iv) Corrective action taken; and 

(v) Point of contact name and telephone 

number. 

Within the next 30 days after you find the 

cracks or within the next 30 days after the 

effective date of this AD, whichever occurs 

later.

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 

approved the information collection requirements contained in this regulation under the 

provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act 

of 1980 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.) and assigned OMB Control Number 2120–0056. 

Alternative Methods of Compliance 

(AMOCs) 

(f) The Manager, Fort Worth Airplane 

Certification Office, FAA, ATTN: Andrew 

McAnaul, Aerospace Engineer, ASW–150 

(c/o MIDO–43), 10100 Reunion Place, Suite 

650, San Antonio, Texas 78216; telephone: 

(210) 308–3365; facsimile: (210) 308–3370, 

has the authority to approve AMOCs for this 

AD, if requested using the procedures found 

in 14 CFR 39.19. Before using any approved 

AMOC on any airplane to which the AMOC 

applies, notify your appropriate principal 

inspector (PI) in the FAA Flight Standards 

District Office (FSDO), or lacking a PI, your 

local FSDO. 

(g) AMOCs approved for AD 2006–22–08 

are not approved for this AD. 

Related Information 

(h) To get copies of the service information 

referenced in this AD, contact Air Tractor 

Inc., P.O. Box 485, Olney, Texas 76374; 

telephone: (940) 564–5616; facsimile: (940) 

564–5612. To view the AD docket, go to the 

Docket Management Facility; U.S. 

Department of Transportation, 400 Seventh 

Street, SW., Nassif Building, Room PL–401, 

Washington, DC, or on the Internet at http:// 

ms.dot.gov. The docket number is Docket No. 

FAA–2007–27212; Directorate Identifier 

2007–CE–011–AD. 

Issued in Kansas City, Missouri, on March 

8, 2007. 

David R. Showers, 

Acting Manager, Small Airplane Directorate, 

Aircraft Certification Service. 

[FR Doc. E7–4737 Filed 3–14–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 39 

[Docket No. FAA–2007–27213; Directorate 

Identifier 2007–CE–012–AD] 

RIN 2120–AA64 

Airworthiness Directives; British 

Aerospace Regional Aircraft Model 

HP.137 Jetstream Mk.1, Jetstream 

Series 200, Jetstream Series 3101, and 

Jetstream Model 3201 Airplanes 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), Department of 

Transportation (DOT). 

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking 

(NPRM). 

SUMMARY: We propose to adopt a new 

airworthiness directive (AD) for the 

products listed above that would 

supersede an existing AD. This 

proposed AD results from mandatory 

continuing airworthiness information 

(MCAI) originated by an aviation 

authority of another country to identify 

and correct an unsafe condition on an 

aviation product. The MCAI describes 

the unsafe condition as: 

Cracking has been found in the nose 

landing gear steering jack piston rod adjacent 

to the eye-end. This was caused by the 

application of excessive tightening torque 

applied to the eye-end whilst being 

assembled during component overhaul. 

Failure of the steering jack piston during 

operation will result in loss of nose wheel 

steering, which may lead to loss of 

directional control during critical phases of 

take-off and landing. 

The proposed AD would require actions 

that are intended to address the unsafe 

condition described in the MCAI. 

DATES: We must receive comments on 

this proposed AD by April 16, 2007. 

ADDRESSES: You may send comments by 

any of the following methods: 

• DOT Docket Web Site: Go to 

http://dms.dot.gov and follow the 

instructions for sending your comments 

electronically. 

• Fax: (202) 493–2251. 

• Mail: Docket Management Facility, 

U.S. Department of Transportation, 400 

Seventh Street, SW., Nassif Building, 

Room PL–401, Washington, DC 20590–

0001. 

• Hand Delivery: Room PL–401 on 

the plaza level of the Nassif Building, 

400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, 

DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday 

through Friday, except Federal holidays. 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

instructions for submitting comments. 

Examining the AD Docket 

You may examine the AD docket on 

the Internet at http://dms.dot.gov; or in 

person at the Docket Management 

Facility 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 Office (telephone (800) 647–

5227) is in the ADDRESSES section. 


rmajette on PROD1PC67 with PROPOSALS