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[Federal Register: October 5, 2010 (Volume 75, Number 192)]
[Proposed Rules]               
[Page 61363-61365]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr05oc10-15]                         

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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 39

[Docket No. FAA-2010-0993; Directorate Identifier 2010-NE-08-AD]
RIN 2120-AA64

 
Airworthiness Directives; Rolls-Royce plc RB211-524 Series, -535 
Series, RB211 Trent 700 Series, and RB211 Trent 800 Series Turbofan 
Engines

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).

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SUMMARY: We propose to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) for the 
products listed above. This proposed AD results from mandatory 
continuing airworthiness information (MCAI) issued 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 on the inner wall between intermediate 
dilution chutes on a total of five front combustion liners of the 
standard corresponding to Rolls-Royce RB211 Service Bulletin No. 72-
D133. The lives of two of these liners were confirmed to be below 
the currently valid borescope inspection interval. Ultimately, crack 
propagation could result in hot gas breakout with potential of 
downstream component distress and multiple turbine blade release 
beyond containment capabilities of the engine casings. Thus, 
cracking of this nature constitutes a potentially unsafe condition.
    Since Rolls-Royce Service Bulletin No. 72-E902 introduces 
further developments of Rolls-Royce RB211 Service Bulletin No. 72-
D133, engines incorporating Rolls-Royce RB211 Service Bulletin No. 
72-E902 are also considered to be potentially affected and are 
therefore included in the applicability of this AD.

We are proposing this AD to detect cracks in the front combustion 
liner, which could result in hot section distress, uncontained multiple 
blade release and possible damage to the aircraft.

DATES: We must receive comments on this proposed AD by November 19, 
2010.

ADDRESSES: You may send comments by any of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and follow the instructions for sending your 
comments electronically.
     Mail: Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., West Building Ground 
Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
     Hand Delivery: Deliver to Mail address above between 9 
a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
     Fax: (202) 493-2251.
    Contact Rolls-Royce plc, P.O. Box 31, Derby, DE24 8BJ, United 
Kingdom; telephone: 011-44-1332-242424; fax: 011-44-1332-249936 for the 
service information identified in this proposed AD.

Examining the AD Docket

    You may examine the AD docket on the Internet at http://www.regulations.gov; or in person at the Docket Operations office 
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 Operations office (telephone (800) 647-5527) is 
the same as the Mail address provided in the ADDRESSES section. 
Comments will be available in the AD docket shortly after receipt.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ian Dargin, Aerospace Engineer, Engine 
Certification Office, FAA, Engine and Propeller Directorate, 12 New 
England Executive Park, Burlington, MA 01803; e-mail: 
ian.dargin@faa.gov; telephone (781) 238-7178; fax (781) 238-7199.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Comments Invited

    We invite you to send any written relevant data, views, or 
arguments about this proposed AD. Send your comments to an address 
listed under the ADDRESSES section. Include ``Docket No. FAA-2010-0993; 
Directorate Identifier 2010-NE-08-AD'' at the beginning of your 
comments. We specifically invite comments on the overall regulatory, 
economic, environmental, and energy aspects of this proposed AD. We 
will consider all comments received by the closing date and may amend 
this proposed AD based on those comments.
    We will post all comments we receive, without change, to http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information you provide. We 
will also post a report summarizing each substantive verbal contact 
with FAA personnel concerning this proposed AD. Using the search 
function of the Web site, anyone can find and read the comments in any 
of our dockets, including, if provided, the name of the individual who 
sent the comment (or signed the comment on behalf of an association, 
business, labor union, etc.).

[[Page 61364]]

You may review the DOT's complete Privacy Act Statement in the Federal 
Register published on April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477-78).

Discussion

    The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), which is the Technical 
Agent for the Member States of the European Community, has issued EASA 
Airworthiness Directive 2009-0243R1, dated November 26, 2009 (referred 
to after this as ``the MCAI''), to correct an unsafe condition for the 
specified products. The MCAI states:

    Cracking has been found on the inner wall between intermediate 
dilution chutes on a total of five front combustion liners of the 
standard corresponding to Rolls-Royce RB211 Service Bulletin No. 72-
D133. The lives of two of these liners were confirmed to be below 
the currently valid borescope inspection interval. Ultimately, crack 
propagation could result in hot gas breakout with potential of 
downstream component distress and multiple turbine blade release 
beyond containment capabilities of the engine casings. Thus, 
cracking of this nature constitutes a potentially unsafe condition.
    Since Rolls-Royce Service Bulletin No. 72-E902 introduces 
further developments of Rolls-Royce RB211 Service Bulletin No. 72-
D133, engines incorporating Rolls-Royce RB211 Service Bulletin No. 
72-E902 are also considered to be potentially affected and are 
therefore included in the applicability of this AD.
    This AD requires a change to the initial and repeat borescope 
inspection intervals for the front combustion liner.

You may obtain further information by examining the MCAI in the AD 
docket.

Relevant Service Information

    Rolls-Royce plc has issued Alert Service Bulletin RB.211-72-AF458, 
Revision 4, dated March 9, 2009. The actions described in this service 
information are intended to correct the unsafe condition identified in 
the MCAI.

FAA's Determination and Requirements of This Proposed AD

    This product has been approved by the aviation authority of the 
United Kingdom, and is approved for operation in the United States. 
Pursuant to our bilateral agreement with the United Kingdom, they have 
notified us of the unsafe condition described in the MCAI and service 
information referenced above. We are proposing this AD because we 
evaluated all information provided by EASA and determined the unsafe 
condition exists and is likely to exist or develop on other products of 
the same type design.

Costs of Compliance

    Based on the service information, we estimate that this proposed AD 
would affect about 239 products of U.S. registry. We also estimate that 
it would take about 1.5 work-hours per product to comply with this 
proposed AD. The average labor rate is $85 per work-hour. No parts are 
required so parts would cost about $0 per product. Based on these 
figures, we estimate the cost of the proposed AD on U.S. operators to 
be $30,473.

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 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 this 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.

List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 39

    Air transportation, Aircraft, Aviation safety, Incorporation by 
reference, 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.

Sec.  39.13  [Amended]

    2. The FAA amends Sec.  39.13 by adding the following new AD:

Rolls-Royce plc: Docket No. FAA-2010-0993; Directorate Identifier 
2010-NE-08-AD.

Comments Due Date

    (a) We must receive comments by November 19, 2010.

Affected Airworthiness Directives (ADs)

    (b) None.

Applicability

    (c) This AD applies to Rolls-Royce (RR) engine models RB211-
524G2-T-19, RB211-524G3-T-19, RB211-524H2-T-19, RB211-524H-T-36, 
RB211-535E4-37, RB211-535E4-B-37, RB211-535E4-C-37, RB211-535E4-B-
75, RB211 Trent 768-60, RB211 Trent 772-60, RB211 Trent 772B-60, 
RB211-Trent 892-17, RB211-Trent 884-17, RB211-Trent 884B-17, RB211-
Trent 877-17, RB211-Trent 875-17, RB211-Trent 892-17, RB211-Trent 
892B-17 and RB211-Trent 895-17 engines, that incorporate RR Service 
Bulletins (SBs) RB.211-72-D133 or RB.211-72-E902. These engines are 
installed on, but not limited to Airbus A330 series airplanes; 
Boeing 747-400 series, 757 series, 767 series, and 777 series 
airplanes; and Tupolev Tu204 series airplanes.

Reason

    (d) This AD results from:

    Cracking has been found on the inner wall between intermediate 
dilution chutes on a total of five front combustion liners of the 
standard corresponding to Rolls-Royce RB211 Service Bulletin No. 72-
D133. The lives of two of these liners were confirmed to be below 
the currently valid borescope inspection interval. Ultimately, crack 
propagation could result in hot gas breakout with potential of 
downstream component distress and multiple turbine blade release 
beyond containment capabilities of the engine casings. Thus, 
cracking of this nature constitutes a potentially unsafe condition.
    Since Rolls-Royce Service Bulletin No. 72-E902 introduces 
further developments of Rolls-Royce RB211 Service Bulletin No. 72-
D133, engines incorporating Rolls-Royce RB211 Service Bulletin No. 
72-E902 are also considered to be potentially affected and are

[[Page 61365]]

therefore included in the applicability of this AD.
    We are issuing this AD to detect cracks in the front combustion 
liner, which could result in hot section distress, uncontained 
multiple blade release and possible damage to the aircraft.

Actions and Compliance

    (e) Unless already done, do the following actions.

Inspection

    (f) Perform a borescope inspection as specified in section 3. 
Accomplishment instructions, subsection A. Borescope Inspection of 
Rolls-Royce RB211 Alert Service Bulletin (ASB) RB.211-72-AF458 
Revision 4, dated March 9, 2009, before the limits specified below:

Initial Inspection

    (1) If the engine has a combustion liner installed with:
    (i) A LIFE on the effective date of this AD, that is equal to or 
greater than the initial inspection threshold specified in column 
(b) in Table 1 of this AD, or
    (ii) A LIFE on the effective date of this AD, that is not known, 
carry out the action specified in paragraph (f) of this AD within 
250 cycles after the effective date of this AD.
    (iii) A LIFE on the effective date of this AD, that is less than 
the initial inspection threshold specified in column (b) of Table 1 
of this AD, perform the borescope inspection before the LIFE exceeds 
the limit specified in column (c) of Table 1 of this AD.

Repeat Inspection

    (2) Thereafter, repeat the borescope inspection at intervals not 
to exceed the cycles specified in column (d) of Table 1 or this AD.

                                                    Table 1--Initial Inspection Thresholds and Limits
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            Column (a)                            Column (b)                              Column (c)                             Column (d)
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                                                                             Initial inspection limit if LIFE is
           Engine Model                  Initial inspection threshold          less than the initial inspection          Repeat inspection interval
                                                                                          threshold
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(i) RB211-524G2-T-19, 524G3-T-19    1,150 cycles..........................  1,400 cycles.........................  1,400 cycles.
 and 524H2-T-19.
(ii) RB211-524H-T-36..............  550 cycles............................  800 cycles...........................  800 cycles.
(iii) RB211-535E4-37, E4-B-37 and   550 cycles............................  800 cycles...........................  800 cycles.
 E4-C-37.
(iv) RB211-535E4-B-75.............  550 cycles............................  800 cycles...........................  800 cycles.
(v) RB211-Trent 768-60, 772-60 and  1,250 cycles..........................  1,500 cycles.........................  1,500 cycles.
 772B-60.
(vi) RB211-Trent 892-17, RB211-     750 cycles............................  1,000 cycles.........................  1,000 cycles.
 Trent 884-17, RB211-Trent 884B-
 17, RB211-Trent 877-17, RB211-
 Trent 875-17, RB211-Trent 892B-17
 and RB211-Trent 895-17 engines.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Definitions

    (g) This AD defines LIFE as the lowest of:
    (1) The number of cycles-since-new of the combustion liner, or
    (2) The number of cycles-in-service (CIS) since replacement of 
the inner wall, or
    (3) The number of CIS since the combustion liner was last 
inspected in accordance with section 3. Accomplishment instructions, 
subsection A. Borescope Inspection of Rolls-Royce RB211 Series 
Propulsion System Series Non-Modification Service Bulletin No. 
RB.211-72-AF458 Revision 2, dated December 21, 2007.

FAA AD Differences

    (h) This AD differs from the Mandatory Continuing Airworthiness 
Information (MCAI) and or service information in that the MCAI AD 
applies to the RB211 Trent 772C-60 engine, which isn't type 
certificated in the United States.

Other FAA AD Provisions

    (i) Alternative Methods of Compliance (AMOCs): The Manager, 
Engine Certification Office, FAA, has the authority to approve AMOCs 
for this AD, if requested using the procedures found in 14 CFR 
39.19.

Related Information

    (j) Refer to MCAI European Aviation Safety Agency Airworthiness 
Directive 2009-0243R1, dated November 26, 2009, and Rolls-Royce ASB 
RB.211-72-AF458, Revision 4, dated March 9, 2009, for related 
information. Contact Rolls-Royce plc, P.O. Box 31, Derby, DE24 8BJ, 
United Kingdom; telephone: 011-44-1332-242424; fax: 011-44-1332-
249936, for a copy of this service information.
    (k) Contact Ian Dargin, Aerospace Engineer, Engine Certification 
Office, FAA, Engine and Propeller Directorate, 12 New England 
Executive Park, Burlington, MA 01803; e-mail: ian.dargin@faa.gov; 
telephone (781) 238-7178; fax (781) 238-7199, for more information 
about this AD.

    Issued in Burlington, Massachusetts, on September 27, 2010.
Peter A. White,
Assistant Manager, Engine and Propeller Directorate, Aircraft 
Certification Service.
[FR Doc. 2010-24888 Filed 10-4-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-13-P
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