AFS

- 16

- 1442

- E Exemption No. 16255

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION WASHINGTON, DC 20591

In the matter of the petition of

AI RCRAFT TECHNICAL Regulatory Docket No. FAA

- 2016

- 5507

SUPPORT ROSWELL for an exemption from § 145.103(b) of Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations

DENIAL OF EXEMPTION

By letter dated October 21, 2015 , Mr

. Amer Machlah

, President

, Aircraft Technical Support Roswell ( ATSR ), 72 Earl Cummings L oop West, Bldg. 1080

, Roswell, NM 88203 petitioned the Federal Aviati on Administration (FAA) on behalf of ATSR for an exemption

from § 145.103(b) of Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR) to the extent necessary to allow ATSR to perform aircraft storage and related maintenance on transport category airplanes without meeting all of the housing and f acility requirements of § 143.103.

Th e petitioner reques ts relief from the following regulation :

Section 145.103 (b), which pr ovid es that a certificated repair station with an airframe rating must provide suitable permanent housing to enclose the largest type and model of aircraft listed on its operations specifications.

The petitioner supports its request with the following information:

The petitioner states that the climatic conditions of southeastern New Mexico, namely

R oswell, are dry, warm

, and ideal for ATSR to complete storage

- related maintenance in an outdoor environment on a year round basis without adversely affecting the quality of work being performed. Additionally, ATSR anticipates tha t the number of aircraft t o be stored at the Roswell Industrial Air Center under its custody/control and under the conditions of the proposed exemption would be well above 5 0 aircraft. There is no hangar in the world that could hold that many air planes at one time in a storage con ditio n

. The idea of moving that2

many aircraft around to facilitate maintenance i n a hanga r would be completely impractical and therefore requires storage to be done outdoors. The aircraft will not be disassembled in a

manner that would cause deterioratio n of any kind. ATSR will use materials that meet or exceed manufacturers’ specifications for the applications performed and will provide adequate safeguards against contamination and weather elements.

ATSR states that t he maintenance it anticipates perfo rming would be only for outside

- related storage of aircraft. ATSR owns and maintains equipment ( e. g ., ladders, service trucks,

scissor lifts

, and man lifts) and tooling n ecessary to perform storage maintenance on airplanes up to and including all series of Boeing 767’s.

ATSR has provided copies of the manufacturers’ storage maintenance programs for the Boeing M D

- 80, Boeing 757

, and Boeing 767 airplanes outlining the type of storage
maintenance to be performed under the terms of the proposed exemption. ATSR asserts that the storage maintenance functions of cleaning airplane s , covering windows and p ressure ports, and applying tape to areas of the fuselage and gear assemblies do not require the airplane to be disassembled or housed

. Any lubrication tasks and checking tire/strut pressures are accomplished in a closed system, meaning that contaminates are not permitted in the system because of the way the system s are des i gned. Moreover, a ny interior servicing and checks required by the storage cards are not affecte d by how the airplane is housed

. ATSR operates a single dayshift crew so lighting is not an issue. Ventilation, temperature, humidity, and other climatic conditions are naturally maintained to a sufficient degree to comply with applicable standard s. Parts removed for storage purposes will be maintained

inside current ly existing facilit ies , which ha ve sufficient space for segregation

, or the parts will be shipped out per customer requirements.

ATSR has received letters of support from the offices of New Mexico Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich, as well as New Mexico’s Governor, Susana Martinez, New Mexico’s State Secretary Jon Barel a , Roswell Mayor Dennis Kintigh

, and Roswell City Manager Steve

Pol ase k. ATSR currently does business with seve ral aircraft companies and has an established list of customers from around the country, including major airlines that would like to do business with ATSR, but these companies require ATSR to hold FAA part 145

certification. Additionally, ATSR c ontinually acquires tooling, equipment

, and personnel in preparation for performing the storage related maintenance on transport category aircraft under the terms of the proposed exemption.

ATSR assures that a level of safety equivalent to that provided b y the regu lations from

which relief is sought would be maintained under the proposed exemption. ATSR has equipment and tooling suitable for use during the preservation of airplanes

, and these are available for inspection at any time. ATSR provides equipment and op erational training to all applicable maintenance personnel.

ATSR maintains that granting the proposed exemption would be in the public interest. The

S tate of New Mexico ranks in the bottom six for economic climate, and has one of the3

highest unemploym e nt rates in the nation. I n particular, the city of Roswell ranks low in median household income and high in poverty and public assistance. Granting the proposed exemption would allow ATSR to grow, providing high tech, high income employment opportunities from within the S tate and out of stat e
, thereby pumping much needed income into local businesses, including the grocery and housing markets. High

- tech jobs would also help the local university (Eastern New Mexico University Roswell) by providing
opportun ities for graduate job placement and advancing the current aviation

- based

curriculum. Additionally, the proposed exemption would allow ATSR to provide major

airlines and aviation

- based customers from all over the country with an ideal location to

store th eir aircraft.

The FAA has determined that good cause exists for waiving the requirement for Federal Register publication because the exemption, if granted, would not set a precedent, and any delay in acting on this petition would be det rimental to ATSR

.

The FAA’ s analysis is as follows:

ATSR presently is seeking FAA part 145 repair station certification. In order for a person to be issued a part 145 repair station certificate, the person must meet the requirements of part 145, including the housing and f acility requirements. As part of the application process, t he

company has submitted a Preapplication Statement of Intent (PASI), applying for an airframe rating to perform maintenance, repair, and inspections of airframes and powerplants related to

outsid e storage of large airplanes. The company would not provide suitable permanent housing to enclose these airplanes

― instead it would do this work outside of housing ( e.g ., a hangar). Information provided by ATSR on the scope of work it intend s to perform include s removing and installing engines, airframe component s
, and avioni c s components. Tasks would encompass on

- a ircraft testing, including engine runs, troubleshooting, and repair of aircraft systems. Powerplant work would include replacement of external parts and accessories installed on the aircraft, preservation and de

- preservation of powerplants on

- wing,

servic ing of engines and components, and overall engine inspections. ATSR stated that it would not separate, repair, or replace any case or gearbox

The area in which ATSR wishes to perform this maintenance is in the desert area of Roswell,

N ew M exico . The en vironment in this area is dry, windy

, and sandy. ATSR wishes to obtain contracts with major air carriers to perform various maintenance, repairs, and inspections

incident to preserv ing and stor ing aircraft out doors in this desert environment without any

f orm of the required housing identified within §§ 145.101, 145.103(a), and 145.103(b). With this type of operation, wind

- blown sand could easily penetrate open fuel lines, open electrical harnesses, open hydraulic lines, etc ., which could be detrimental to the assurance of safety for the aircraft and the airframe component parts and engines.

The FAA regulations require that repair station facilities be suitable to protect the aircraft and

its assemblies and subassemblies

, and also the maintenance p ersonn el from adverse

environmental conditions through control of temperature, humidity, and other climatic4

conditions sufficient to ensure personnel perform maintenance, preventive maintenance, or alterations to the standards required by part s 43 and 145

. Whil e some of ATSR’s proposed work scope items may be performed outside of housing ( e.g

. , aircraft storage preparation and limited storage inspections and maintenance ) ; other tasks should be protected by housing the airplane ( e.g ., removal and/or installation of flight controls, major landing gear components, and powerplants ) , or by some other means of providing protection appropriate for the specific

work

.

Under 14 C.F.R. § 11.81(d) and (e), a petitioner must show why a grant of exemption would be in the pu blic interest, and why the relief sought would not adversely affect safety, or how the exemption would provide a level of safety at least equal to that provided by the rule from which the exemption was sought. AT SR states that the climate conditions are i deal for the work it proposes and assures that safety would not be compromised. These assertions, without more, are in sufficient to meet the burden set forth in the regulation. ATSR provided

no evidence or information to demonstrate how the company inten d s to protect the aircraft and maintenance providers from weather elements such as heat, sand, moisture, snow

, and wind during maintenance without suitable housing for the airplane . These environmental conditions are prevalent in Roswell, NM , at various t imes

. Moreover, while enhancing the economy of Roswell may be in the public interest, a company’s inability to provide a level of safety at least equal to the rule from which exemption is sought is not.

The FAA’s Decision:

In consideration of the foregoing, I find that a grant of exemption would not be in the public interest. Therefore, pursuant to the authority contained in 49 U.S.C. §§ 106(f), 40113

and 44701

, I hereby deny Aircraft Technical Support Roswell’s petition for an exemption

from 14 C FR § 143.103 (b)

.

Issued in Washington, D

. C

. , o n April 1 3 , 2016

.

/s/ John Barbagallo Deputy Director, Flight Standards Service