~

AerS31e

~

January 24,2011

III Alhambra Plaza j5uite 1110

(oral Gables, Fl33134

afflIr: {30Sl 764~3100

ft:r. (305) 444-1275

U.S. Department of Transportation

Docket Operations, West Building

Ground Floor, Room W12-140

1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE

Washington, DC 20590

Attention: Mr. Ali Bahrami, Manager

RE: Petitionfor ExemptionRequest

Dear Mr. Bahrami:

In light of the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) published on September 24,2010 in the

Federal Register and the unknown conditions regarding the safely of the seats manufactured by

Koila Industries, Ltd., AerSale, Inc. ("AerSaleM) hereby petitions the FAA to request a limited

exemption from 14 CFR Part 25 (specifically. Part 25, the certification process requirements,

only as related to the §25.561, §25.853 and Appendix F of Part 25) of the Federal Aviation

Regulations in the manner described below.

AerSale is the current owner of multiple Ex-JAL 6747-400 series aircraft installed with the

affected Koito seats which are the subject of NPRM 2010-NM-156-AD. We are attempting to

obtain approval to re-configure one of our 8747-400 series aircraft from its current 12 First

Class/77 Business Class/237 Economy Class configuration to a 22 Business Class/446

Economy Class configuration with Designated Engineering Representative ("DER") approval,

using affected seats we obtained from another 6747-400 aircraft we own. As you are aware,

this change in LOPA requires the approval of the FAA or its designee. Our DER has been

advised by the FAA that he is not authorized to approve any configurations involving the Koito

_____ ,_~,~.e,t!""p,~gauseof the unknown safely cO)l9LtlQ,Q.".of the seats, Such ins1~,lJ.§,F9.IJ..'"",l(I'h!gh_colJ~~~ _

considered a "new installation approval," would also be prohibited until the compliance period

for the proposed Airworthiness Directive ("AD") took effect.

Umited Exemption: AerSale hereby requests, for the purpose of approving LOPAs for our

6747-400 aircraft only, that the FAA please provide us with a limited exemption to Part 25 of the

FARs as related to §25.561, §25.853 and Appendix F of Part 25 of the FARs, only with respect

to the Koilo seats, TSO-C39b, removed from passenger service from aircraft already owned by

AerSale. The exemption would be expire thirty-six months from the date granted or such lesser

period of time, as specified by the proposed AD, once in effect.

Public Policy and Safety Risk: We believe that we should be granted this limited exemption as

our actions mirror the intent and spirit of the public policy set forth in the NPRM. This NPRM

was enacted to ensure that the existing number of affected Koito seats in the market does not

increase and that safety is assured by testing each seat through the time of the compliance

period in the proposed AD. 6y not allowing for the installation of any additional seats and only

allowing a one-for-one replacement of existing seats, the NPRM balances the interests of safety
121 Alhambra Plaza ISuite 1110

(oral Gables. FLm 34

Offl<f: (305) 764-3200

Fox: (305) 444-1275

and practical compliance by allowing operators time to comply with the AD, while prohibiting the

introduction of new seats on aircraft being operated through new configurations. We believe

that the exemption we have requested in our unique circumstance advances the goals of the

proposed AD by not introducing any new seats into commerce. If the FAA grants us this

exemption and permits us to install new seats onto our aircraft, the seats we will be using in the

proposed and other LOPAs will only be seats that have been removed from passenger service

from aircraft owned by AerSale, and which will not be replaced with other seats subject to the

NPRM. We can ensure that the aircraft from which the seats were removed will not receive new

seats because the aircraft and any other aircraft from which AerSale intends to remove seats

will either be disassembled or converted to cargo aircraft. Therefore, not only is AerSale

creating no increase in the outstanding number of seats in the marketplace and in service, but

we will also be creating a substantive net decrease to the number of total affected seats being

used in passenger service under the U.S. registry.

To illustrate this effect, as mentioned, the aircraft undergoing maintenance which we hope to

reconfigure has a total of 326 Koito seats. The changes we are seeking would increase this

number to 464. However, the total number of seats installed on the aircraft from which the

seats came, the Boeing 747-400 bearing MSN 24427, is 384. Therefore, the net effect of

AerSale being permitted to pelform the reconfiguration is the removal of 246 seats from

commerce_ By permitting AerSale to obtain a "new installation approval" (as it is written in the

NPRM), the FAA would be introducing zero new affected seats into passenger service and

would in fact be reducing the actual number of seats in existence as no seats would replace the

seats removed from MSN 24427.

The level of risk to the public, therefore, would not increase and would likely decrease if AerSale

were to be granted the requested exemption. Additionally, as our exemption is only requested

for a period of thirty-six months, the level of safety to the public would be acceptable. We base

this statement on the analysis made by the FAA in allowing operators to maintain their aircraft in

service for a two-to-three year period prior to the testing requirement set forth in the proposed

------AU;wnicn-Tsfne same penoareqiiesleCfTrfthls exemption.

Hardship and Compliance: AerSale is a leasing company which purchased these 8747-400

aircraft from Japan Airlines International, where they were registered with the Japan Civil

Aviation Bureau. Therefore, our situation is different from the operators mentioned in the NPRM

and we ask for different treatment. We have no previously FAA~approved LOPAs to rely upon

for our aircraft and cannot reconfigure our aircraft to meet our needs unlike operators who have

multiple pre-approved LOPAs at their disposal. Therefore, in addition to the public policy

reasons described above, we feei that this exemption should be granted to put our activities on

par with the permitted actions that operators may take under the NPRM and proposed AD. This

disparity in circumstance is creating undue hardship and preventing AerSale from ieasing its

fleet of B747-400 series aircraft.

We currentiy own or are in the process of taking title to nineteen of these affected aircraft. We

recognize that we must comply with the AD once it becomes effective and have already taken

steps to begin testing. However, until such time as the FAA deems it necessary to require
I/JI!!Jb.:. AerS31e

~

111 Alhambra Plaza I Suite 1110

(oral Gables, Fl33134

O/f;,"' (305) 764-3200

fax: (305) 444-1 m

compliance with the proposed AD, we ask that we should be permitted to be able to reconfigure

our aircraft 10 meet our needs and to not be thwarted in our efforts to take economic advantage

of the aircraft we own prior to the AD becoming effective. We fully intend to test or change each

seat or convert each and every aircraft we own to cargo configuration at such time.

Not only do we intend to effect compliance with the proposed AD in the future, but we have

already taken steps to begin testing and we are working in concert with the FAA to review and

approve the procedure and results. However, as we currently have an aircraft undergoing

heavy maintenance and we wish to reconfigure our aircraft to meet the needs of future lessees,

we ask that you please provide us with the limited exemption we seek under Part 25 and the

proposed AD, once in effect, and allow us to perform the requested modifications to our fleet.

Federal Registry Summary: In the event you view our request favorably, the following is a

summary for the FAA to publish in the Federal Register, if it so chooses, upon the grant of this

limited exemption:

This exemption grants relief to AerSale, Inc, from having to meet the

requirements of Part 25 only as related to the §25.561, §25.853 and Appendix F

of Part 25 with respect to seats for its fleet of Boeing 747-400 aircraft.

This exemption is limited in duration and scope, as it lasts from thirty-six months

from the date of this exemption (or such lesser period of time, as specified by the

applicable Airworthiness Directive in effect at such time) and is limited to the

installation of only those seats removed from other Boeing 747-400 aircraft

owned by AerSale, Inc.

Thank you for your time and consideration. Your prompt attention to this matter would be

'"9reatlyappreciate-d~lease-do---not11esitate-to-conta'ct,rre-at'"{305j'"Sf1=1-740'-if"yoQ""have"'-any"----"""'-"--

questions.

Best regafds,

~

Iso Nezaj

Vice President Technical Services

Copy: Transport Airplane Directorate, Aircraft Certification Service, 1601 Lind Ave. SW,

Renton, WA 98055-4056