Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 10 / Wednesday, January 17, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 1925 

‘‘S.A.R.’’ Under paragraph 3(f)(2) of the March 25, 

1997, U.S.-China Agreement on the Maintenance of 

the U.S. Consulate General in the Hong Kong 

Special Administrative Region, U.S. officials are 

required to notify Chinese officials of the arrest or 

detention of the bearers of Hong Kong passports in 

the same manner as is required for bearers of 

Chinese passports—i.e., immediately, and in any 

event, within four days of the arrest or detention. 

4Consular communication is not mandatory for 

any Polish national who has been admitted for 

permanent residence in the United States. Such 

notification should only be provided upon request 

by a Polish national with permanent residency in 

the United States. 

5United Kingdom includes England, Scotland, 

Wales, Northern Ireland and Islands and the British 

dependencies of Anguilla, British Virgin Islands, 

Bermuda, Montserrat, and the Turks and Caicos 

Islands. Their residents carry British passports. 

6All U.S.S.R. successor states are covered by this 

agreement. They are: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, 

Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russian 

Federation, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and 

Uzbekistan. Although the U.S.S.R. no longer exists, 

the U.S.S.R is listed here, because some nationals 

of its successor states may still be traveling on a 

U.S.S.R. passport. Mandatory consular notification 

applies to any national of such a state, including 

one traveling on a U.S.S.R. passport. 1 71 FR 37862 (July 3, 2006). 

Hungary 

Jamaica 

Kazakhstan 

Kiribati 

Kuwait 

Kyrgyzstan 

Malaysia 

Malta 

Mauritius 

Moldova 

Mongolia 

Nigeria 

Philippines 

Poland 4

Romania 

Russian Federation 

St. Kitts and Nevis 

St. Lucia 

St. Vincent/Grenadines 

Seychelles 

Sierra Leone 

Singapore 

Slovak Republic 

Tajikistan 

Tanzania 

Tonga 

Trinidad and Tobago 

Tunisia 

Turkmenistan 

Tuvalu 

Ukraine 

United Kingdom 5

U.S.S.R. 6

Uzbekistan 

Zambia 

Zimbabwe 

* * * * * 

Dated: January 9, 2007. 

Michael Chertoff, 

Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 07–137 Filed 1–11–07; 2:27pm] 

BILLING CODE 4410–10–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY 

Office of Thrift Supervision 

12 CFR Part 563 

[No. 2007–02] 

RIN 1550–AC06 

Subordinated Debt Securities and 

Mandatorily Redeemable Preferred 

Stock 

AGENCY: Office of Thrift Supervision, 

Treasury. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: This final rule updates OTS 

regulations that require a savings 

association to obtain approval (or nonobjection) before it may include 

subordinated debt securities or 

mandatorily redeemable preferred stock 

in supplementary (tier 2) capital. The 

final rule removes several unnecessary 

or outdated requirements and conforms 

certain provisions, such as maturity 

period requirements and purchaser 

restrictions, to the rules issued by the 

other federal banking agencies. The final 

rule also reconciles conflicting rules, 

adds appropriate statutory crossreferences, and rewrites the rule in plain 

language. 

DATES: This rule is effective April 1, 

2007. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

David W. Riley, Senior Analyst, (202) 

906–6669; Capital Policy, Karen 

Osterloh, Special Counsel, (202) 906–

6639, Regulations and Legislation 

Division, or Gary Jeffers, Senior 

Attorney, (202) 906–6457, Business 

Transactions Division, Office of Thrift 

Supervision, 1700 G Street, NW., 

Washington, DC 20552. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Discussion 

A savings association must obtain 

OTS approval (or non-objection) before 

it may include subordinated debt 

securities or mandatorily redeemable 

preferred stock in supplementary (tier 2) 

capital. OTS rules at 12 CFR 563.81 

address application and notice 

procedures, requirements that securities 

must meet to be included in 

supplementary capital, conditions for 

OTS approval (or non-objection), and 

other requirements. 

On July 3, 2006, OTS proposed to 

update 12 CFR 563.81 to delete 

unnecessary or outdated requirements 

and conform certain provisions, such as 

maturity period requirements and 

purchaser restrictions, to the rules 

issued by the other federal banking 

agencies. In addition, OTS proposed to 

reconcile 12 CFR 563.81 with 

conflicting OTS rules, add appropriate 

statutory cross-references, and rewrite 

the rule in plain language.1

OTS received comments from two 

trade associations in support of the 

proposed rule. Both commenters 

observed that the proposed rule is a 

much-needed update to the existing 

provisions. They noted that the 

proposed rule clarifies the existing 

requirements, is more consistent with 

the rules issued by other federal banking 

agencies, is less burdensome than the 

current rule, and provides greater 

flexibility to savings associations. 

Commenters suggested only a few 

revisions to the proposed rule. These 

suggestions are discussed below. Unless 

otherwise noted, OTS has adopted the 

proposed rule without substantive 

change. 

A. Processing and Review of 

Applications and Notices—Final 

§ 563.81(b) and (d) 

The proposed rule amended the 

existing rules governing OTS processing 

and review of applications and notices 

seeking approval of, or non-objection to, 

the inclusion of subordinated debt 

securities or mandatorily redeemable 

preferred stock in supplementary 

capital. These revisions deleted 

outdated rules that overlapped or 

duplicated 12 CFR part 516 

(Application Processing Guidelines), 

and substituted appropriate crossreferences to that part. 

Commenters generally supported 

these revisions. One commenter, 

however, noted that proposed 

§ 563.81(a) stated that a savings 

association may file its application or 

notice before or after it issues the 

covered securities, but may not include 

the covered securities in supplementary 

capital until OTS approves the 

application or does not object to the 

notice. This commenter urged OTS to 

establish a 30-day time limit on OTS’s 

ability to object to a notice. The 

commenter argued that this change 

would provide a savings association 

with certainty that the covered 

securities that were the subject of a 

notice could be treated as tier 2 capital 

without further OTS action. 

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1926 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 10 / Wednesday, January 17, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 

2 12 CFR 563.81(b)(3)(2006). 

3 12 CFR 250.166(b)(2)(FRB); and 12 CFR part 

325, Appendix A, § I.A.2.(c)(2) and (d)(FDIC). See 

Comptroller’s Licensing Manual, Subordinated Debt 

(November 2003), pp 15–16. 

4 12 CFR 250.166 (FRB); 12 CFR part 325, 

Appendix A, § I.A.2.(d)(FDIC); and 12 CFR part 3, 

Appendix A, § 2(b)(4) and Comptroller’s Licensing 

Manual, Subordinated Debt (November 2003)(OCC). 

5Public offering includes sales in a nonpublic 

offering defined in 12 CFR 563g.4. 

6 15 U.S.C. 77aaa et seq. 

7 12 CFR 563.81(d)(4)(2006). 

8 15 U.S.C. 77ddd. 

9 15 U.S.C. 77d(6). 10 17 CFR 230.501(a). See 15 U.S.C. 77(a)(15). 

This issue is already addressed by 

proposed § 563.81(d)(1), which states 

that OTS will review all applications 

and notices under 12 CFR part 516, 

subpart E. Under part 516, subpart E, if 

a savings association has appropriately 

filed a notice with OTS under the 

expedited treatment, it is permitted to 

engage in the proposed activity 30 days 

after the filing date, unless OTS takes 

certain specified actions before the 

expiration of that time period. See 12 

CFR 516.200 (2006). OTS has not 

included the requested clarification in 

the final rule. 

B. Mandatory Prepayment of Principal—

Final § 563.81(c)(3) 

The proposed rule at § 563.81(c)(3) 

restated the current rules regarding 

mandatory prepayment of subordinated 

debt.2 Specifically, the proposed rule 

stated that subordinated debt securities 

may not provide events of default or 

contain other provisions that could 

result in a mandatory prepayment of 

principal, other than events of default 

that: 

• Relate to bankruptcy, insolvency, 

receivership, or similar events. 

• Arise from the savings association’s 

failure to make timely payment of 

interest or principal. 

• Arise from its failure to comply 

with reasonable financial, operating, 

and maintenance covenants of a type 

that are customarily included in 

indentures for publicly offered debt 

securities. 

The proposed rule also continued to 

state that any acceleration of payment of 

principal on a subordinated debt 

security by a savings association that 

fails to meet certain capital 

requirements is subject to OTS prior 

approval. 

In the preamble to the proposed rule, 

OTS noted that all of the banking 

agencies allow for the mandatory 

prepayment or acceleration of principal 

upon events of default related to 

bankruptcy, insolvency, receivership, 

and similar events,3 but there is no 

uniform approach with respect to 

prepayment or acceleration upon other 

events of default.4 OTS sought public 

comment on whether it should make 

additional revisions to this section. OTS 

specifically asked commenters to 

address whether the other banking 

agency rules more appropriately address 

the events of default that may trigger 

mandatory prepayment or acceleration 

of principal. 

One commenter addressed this 

subject. This commenter generally 

supported the proposed restatement of 

the current rule, which limits 

mandatory prepayment to specific 

events of default. The commenter urged 

OTS not to make additional revisions to 

this rule. The commenter noted that 

there is no evidence cited that these 

events of default have created a problem 

for savings associations in the past. In 

light of these comments, OTS has not 

included any further revisions to this 

provision. 

C. Indenture Requirements—Final 

§ 563.81(c)(4) 

The current rules require a savings 

association to use an indenture for 

subordinated debt securities. Moreover, 

where the aggregate amount of 

subordinated debt securities that are 

publicly offered 5 exceeds certain 

thresholds in the Trust Indenture Act of 

1939 (TIA),6 the current rules require 

the indenture to provide for the 

appointment of a trustee other than the 

savings association or its affiliate, and 

for the collective enforcement of 

security holders’ rights and remedies.7

The proposed rule retained this 

provision, but updated the thresholds to 

reflect statutory changes to the TIA. 

The preamble observed that the TIA 

requires indentures for most debt 

instruments, but does not require an 

indenture where the underlying 

securities are exempt from registration 

under the Securities Act of 1933 

(Securities Act).8 OTS indicated that it 

was considering exempting certain 

issuances from the indenture 

requirements and sought comment on 

this possible change. OTS noted, for 

example, that offerings made solely to 

accredited investors are exempt under 

the Securities Act.9 OTS specifically 

asked whether it should exempt 

offerings to accredited investors that are 

holding companies of the issuer (or their 

subsidiaries) from the indenture 

requirement, and whether it should also 

exempt offerings to unaffiliated 

accredited investors. Both commenters 

urged OTS to adopt an accredited 

investor exemption. 

Under the Securities Act and the TIA, 

‘‘accredited investors’’ include such 

entities as: Brokers or dealers registered 

under the Securities Exchange Act of 

1934; insurance companies as defined 

in the Securities Act; investment 

companies registered under the 

Investment Company Act of 1940; 

certain employee benefit plans; 

directors, executive officers, or general 

partners of the issuer; natural persons 

with income or net worth in excess of 

specified limits; and certain trusts with 

assets in excess of specified limits.10

These investors are considered to have 

sufficient financial and professional 

resources and sophistication to analyze 

the offering, make informed decisions, 

and defend and exercise their rights. 

The final rule exempts issuances 

solely to accredited investors from the 

indenture requirement. This change will 

make the indenture requirement more 

consistent with the TIA, which 

recognizes the presumed sophistication 

of these types of investors. This position 

will also reduce the regulatory burden 

of the rules. To provide appropriate 

protection to non-accredited investors, 

the final rule requires a savings 

association to have an indenture in 

place before any debt securities, for 

which an exemption from the indenture 

requirement is claimed, are transferred 

to any non-accredited investor. If an 

issuer relies on this exemption from the 

indenture requirement, it must place a 

legend on the debt securities indicating 

that an indenture must be in place 

before the debt securities are transferred 

to any non-accredited investor. 

II. Executive Order 12866 

The Director of OTS has determined 

that this final rule does not constitute a 

‘‘significant regulatory action’’ for 

purposes of Executive Order 12866. 

III. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 

1995 

Today’s final rule revises an existing 

rule to delete unnecessary, outdated, 

and conflicting requirements, to add 

appropriate statutory cross-references, 

and to rewrite the rule in plain 

language. Accordingly, OTS has 

determined that the final rule will not 

result in expenditures by state, local, or 

tribal governments or by the private 

sector of $100 million or more and that 

a budgetary impact statement is not 

required under section 202 of the 

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 

1995. 

IV. Regulatory Flexibility Act 

Pursuant to section 605(b) of the 

Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) (5 

U.S.C. 601), the Director certifies that 

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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 10 / Wednesday, January 17, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 1927 

this final rule will not have a significant 

economic impact on a substantial 

number of small entities. The final rule 

merely revises an existing rule to delete 

unnecessary, outdated, and conflicting 

requirements, to add appropriate 

statutory cross-references, and to rewrite 

the rule in plain language. 

V. Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

The information collection 

requirements in the existing OTS rules 

at 12 CFR 563.81 were previously 

approved under OMB control number 

1550–00xx. The final continues to 

incorporate these requirements and does 

not make any substantive changes that 

affect the overall burden of compliance. 

List of Subjects in 12 CFR Part 563 

Accounting, Administrative practice 

and procedure, Advertising, Conflict of 

interest, Crime, Currency, Holding 

companies, Investments, Mortgages, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements, Savings associations, 

Securities, Surety bond. 

■ Accordingly, the Office of Thrift 

Supervision amends 12 CFR part 563 as 

set forth below: 

PART 563—SAVINGS 

ASSOCIATIONS—OPERATIONS 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 563 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 12 U.S.C. 375b, 1462, 1462a, 

1463, 1464, 1467a, 1468, 1817, 1820, 1828, 

1831o, 3806; 31 U.S.C. 5318; 42 U.S.C. 4106. 

■ 2. Revise § 563.81 to read as follows: 

§ 563.81 Inclusion of subordinated debt 

securities and mandatorily redeemable 

preferred stock as supplementary capital. 

(a) Scope. A savings association must 

comply with this section in order to 

include subordinated debt securities or 

mandatorily redeemable preferred stock 

(‘‘covered securities’’) in supplementary 

capital under 12 CFR 567.5(b). If a 

savings association does not include 

covered securities in supplementary 

capital, it is not required to comply with 

this section. 

(b) Application and notice 

procedures. (1) A savings association 

must file an application or notice under 

12 CFR part 516, subpart A seeking OTS 

approval of, or non-objection to, the 

inclusion of covered securities in 

supplementary capital. The savings 

association may file its application or 

notice before or after it issues covered 

securities, but may not include covered 

securities in supplementary capital until 

OTS approves the application or does 

not object to the notice. 

(2) A savings association must also 

comply with the securities offering rules 

at 12 CFR part 563g by filing an offering 

circular for a proposed issuance of 

covered securities, unless the offering 

qualifies for an exemption under that 

part. 

(c) Securities requirements. To be 

included in supplementary capital, 

covered securities must meet the 

following requirements: 

(1) Form. (i) Each certificate 

evidencing a covered security must: 

(A) Bear the following legend on its 

face, in bold type: ‘‘This security is not 

a savings account or deposit and it is 

not insured by the United States or any 

agency or fund of the United States;’’

(B) State that the security is 

subordinated on liquidation, as to 

principal, interest, and premium, to all 

claims against the savings association 

that have the same priority as savings 

accounts or a higher priority; 

(C) State that the security is not 

secured by the savings association’s 

assets or the assets of any affiliate of the 

savings association, as defined in 12 

CFR 583.2; 

(D) State that the security is not 

eligible collateral for a loan by the 

savings association; 

(E) State the prohibition on the 

payment of dividends or interest at 12 

U.S.C. 1828(b) and, in the case of 

subordinated debt securities, state the 

prohibition on the payment of principal 

and interest at 12 U.S.C. 1831o(h); 

(F) For subordinated debt securities, 

state or refer to a document stating the 

terms under which the savings 

association may prepay the obligation; 

and 

(G) State or refer to a document 

stating that the savings association must 

obtain OTS approval before the 

voluntarily prepayment of principal on 

subordinated debt securities, the 

acceleration of payment of principal on 

subordinated debt securities, or the 

voluntarily redemption of mandatorily 

redeemable preferred stock (other than 

scheduled redemptions), if the savings 

association is undercapitalized, 

significantly undercapitalized, or 

critically undercapitalized as described 

in § 565.4(b) of this chapter, fails to 

meet the regulatory capital requirements 

at 12 CFR part 567, or would fail to meet 

any of these standards following the 

payment. 

(ii) A savings association must 

include such additional statements as 

OTS may prescribe for certificates, 

purchase agreements, indentures, and 

other related documents. OTS will 

prescribe the text of these additional 

statements in its Application Processing 

Handbook. 

(2) Maturity requirements. Covered 

securities must have an original 

weighted average maturity or original 

weighted average period to required 

redemption of at least five years. 

(3) Mandatory prepayment. 

Subordinated debt securities and related 

documents may not provide events of 

default or contain other provisions that 

could result in a mandatory prepayment 

of principal, other than events of default 

that: 

(i) Arise from the savings association’s 

failure to make timely payment of 

interest or principal; 

(ii) Arise from its failure to comply 

with reasonable financial, operating, 

and maintenance covenants of a type 

that are customarily included in 

indentures for publicly offered debt 

securities; or 

(iii) Relate to bankruptcy, insolvency, 

receivership, or similar events. 

(4) Indenture. (i) Except as provided 

in paragraph (c)(4)(ii) of this section, a 

savings association must use an 

indenture for subordinated debt 

securities. If the aggregate amount of 

subordinated debt securities publicly 

offered (excluding sales in a non-public 

offering as defined in 12 CFR 563g.4) 

and sold in any consecutive 12-month 

or 36-month period exceeds $5,000,000 

or $10,000,000 respectively (or such 

lesser amount that the Securities and 

Exchange Commission shall establish by 

rule or regulation under 15 U.S.C. 

77ddd), the indenture must provide for 

the appointment of a trustee other than 

the savings association or an affiliate of 

the savings association (as defined at 12 

CFR 583.2) and for collective 

enforcement of the security holders’

rights and remedies. 

(ii) A savings association is not 

required to use an indenture if the 

subordinated debt securities are sold 

only to accredited investors, as that term 

is defined in 15 U.S.C. 77d(6). A savings 

association must have an indenture that 

meets the requirements of paragraph 

(c)(4)(i) of this section in place before 

any debt securities for which an 

exemption from the indenture 

requirement is claimed, are transferred 

any non-accredited investor. If a savings 

association relies on this exemption 

from the indenture requirement, it must 

place a legend on the debt securities 

indicating that an indenture must be in 

place before the debt securities are 

transferred to any non-accredited 

investor. 

(d) OTS review. (1) OTS will review 

notices and applications under 12 CFR 

part 516, subpart E. 

(2) In reviewing notices and 

applications under this section, OTS 

will consider whether: 

(i) The issuance of the covered 

securities is authorized under 

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1928 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 10 / Wednesday, January 17, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 

applicable laws and regulations and is 

consistent with the savings association’s 

charter and bylaws. 

(ii) The savings association is at least 

adequately capitalized under § 565.4(b) 

of this chapter and meets the regulatory 

capital requirements at § 567.2 of this 

chapter. 

(iii) The savings association is or will 

be able to service the covered securities. 

(iv) The covered securities are 

consistent with the requirements of this 

section. 

(v) The covered securities and related 

transactions sufficiently transfer risk 

from the Deposit Insurance Fund. 

(vi) OTS has no objection to the 

issuance based on the savings 

association’s overall policies, condition, 

and operations. 

(3) OTS approval or non-objection is 

conditioned upon no material changes 

to the information disclosed in the 

application or notice submitted to OTS. 

OTS may impose such additional 

requirements or conditions as it may 

deem necessary to protect purchasers, 

the savings association, OTS, or the 

Deposit Insurance Fund. 

(e) Amendments. If a savings 

association amends the covered 

securities or related documents 

following the completion of OTS 

review, it must obtain OTS approval or 

non-objection under this section before 

it may include the amended securities 

in supplementary capital. 

(f) Sale of covered securities. The 

savings association must complete the 

sale of covered securities within one 

year after OTS approval or nonobjection under this section. A savings 

association may request an extension of 

the offering period by filing a written 

request with OTS. The savings 

association must demonstrate good 

cause for the extension and file the 

request at least 30 days before the 

expiration of the offering period or any 

extension of the offering period. 

(g) Reports. A savings association 

must file the following information with 

OTS within 30 days after the savings 

association completes the sale of 

covered securities includable as 

supplementary capital. If the savings 

association filed its application or 

notice following the completion of the 

sale, it must submit this information 

with its application or notice: 

(1) A written report indicating the 

number of purchasers, the total dollar 

amount of securities sold, the net 

proceeds received by the savings 

association from the issuance, and the 

amount of covered securities, net of all 

expenses, to be included as 

supplementary capital; 

(2) Three copies of an executed form 

of the securities and a copy of any 

related documents governing the 

issuance or administration of the 

securities; and 

(3) A certification by the appropriate 

executive officer indicating that the 

savings association complied with all 

applicable laws and regulations in 

connection with the offering, issuance, 

and sale of the securities. 

Dated: November 28, 2006. 

By the Office of Thrift Supervision. 

John M. Reich, 

Director. 

[FR Doc. E7–475 Filed 1–16–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6720–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 39 

[Docket No. FAA–2006–25670; Directorate 

Identifier 2006–NM–027–AD; Amendment 

39–14868; AD 2006–26–10] 

RIN 2120–AA64 

Airworthiness Directives; Airbus Model 

A300 B2 and B4 Series Airplanes 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), Department of 

Transportation (DOT). 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: The FAA is adopting a new 

airworthiness directive (AD) for certain 

Airbus Model A300 B2 and B4 series 

airplanes. This AD requires revising the 

airplane flight manual (AFM) to include 

procedures for resetting the trim and 

pitch trim levers after each landing, 

determining which servomotor moves 

the pitch trim control wheel, and doing 

applicable other specified actions. This 

AD also provides for optional 

terminating actions for those 

requirements. This AD results from a 

report of a sudden nose-up movement 

after disengagement of the autopilot in 

cruise. We are issuing this AD to ensure 

that the flightcrew is aware of the 

procedures for resetting the trim and 

pitch trim levers after each landing and 

to prevent failure of the servomotors of 

the pitch trim systems during flight. 

Failure of the servomotors of the pitch 

trim systems could result in 

uncommanded nose-up movement of 

the control surface of the pitch trim 

systems after disengagement of the 

autopilot in cruise. 

DATES: This AD becomes effective 

February 21, 2007. 

The Director of the Federal Register 

approved the incorporation by reference 

of certain publications listed in the AD 

as of February 21, 2007. 

ADDRESSES: You may examine the AD 

docket on the Internet at http:// 

dms.dot.gov or in person at the Docket 

Management Facility, U.S. Department 

of Transportation, 400 Seventh Street, 

SW., Nassif Building, Room PL–401, 

Washington, DC. 

Contact Airbus, 1 Rond Point Maurice 

Bellonte, 31707 Blagnac Cedex, France, 

for service information identified in this 

AD. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Thomas Stafford, Aerospace Engineer, 

International Branch, ANM–116, 

Transport Airplane Directorate, FAA, 

1601 Lind Avenue, SW., Renton, 

Washington 98057–3356; telephone 

(425) 227–1622; fax (425) 227–1149. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Examining the Docket 

You may examine the airworthiness 

directive (AD) docket on the Internet at 

http://dms.dot.gov or in person at the 

Docket Management Facility office 

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

through Friday, except Federal holidays. 

The Docket Management Facility office 

(telephone (800) 647–5227) is located on 

the plaza level of the Nassif Building at 

the street address stated in the 

ADDRESSES section. 

Discussion 

The FAA issued a notice of proposed 

rulemaking (NPRM) to amend 14 CFR 

part 39 to include an AD that would 

apply to certain Airbus Model A300 B2 

and B4 series airplanes. That NPRM was 

published in the Federal Register on 

August 23, 2006 (71 FR 49385). That 

NPRM proposed to require revising the 

airplane flight manual (AFM) to include 

procedures for resetting the trim and 

pitch trim levers after each landing, 

determining which servomotor moves 

the pitch trim control wheel, and doing 

applicable other specified actions. That 

NPRM also provided for optional 

terminating actions for those 

requirements. 

Comments 

We provided the public the 

opportunity to participate in the 

development of this AD. We have 

considered the comments received. 

Request To Include Procedures From 

the Temporary Revision 

ASTAR Air Cargo (ASTAR) requests 

that paragraph (f) of the NPRM be 

revised to include the AFM procedures 

specified in French airworthiness 

directive F–2003–291 R1, issued July 6, 

2005. ASTAR notes that paragraph (f) of 

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