( ^ 

Ronald J . Hinderberger The Boeing Company 

Lead Administrator P.O. Box 3707 MC 67-LR 

Delegated Compliance Org. Seattle, WA 98124-2207 

Commercial Airplanes 

SEP 2 4 2010 

BDCO-10-01976 ,J ^^ ^ 

CO !^^0 ^ 

U.S. Department of Transportation p, ^^:z : 

Docket Management System rd^Z ^ 

400 7"^ Street, SW, Room PL401 ^ ^M ^ 

Washington, DC 20591-0001 ^ cr> 

Subject: Petition for Exemption from Title 14 Code of 

Federal Regulations section 25.809(a) at 

Amendment 25-116 With Respect to Certain 

Requirements for the Passenger Cabin 

Model: 787-8 

The Boeing Company respectfully submits this petition for exemption from 

specific aspects of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Section 25.809(a) at 

Amendment 25-116 for a limited number of 787-8 airplanes as described in the 

summary below. The enclosure to this letter provides the details of the petition in 

accordance with Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Section 11.81. The 

following summary is provided for the Federal Register in accordance with 14 

CFR Section 11.81(f). 

Summary for Federal Register 

Petitioner: The Boeing Company. 

Section of 14 CFR Affected: Section 25.809(a). 

Description of Relief Being Sought: 

Boeing is requesting relief from the "all lighting conditions" element of Section 

25.809(a) at Amendment 25-116 for a limited number of 787-8 airplanes. If 

granted, this exemption will allow sufficient time for Boeing to develop, certify 

and incorporate into production a new exterior lighting system that is compliant 

with Section 25.809(a). The exemption would allow relief from the "all lighting 

conditions" requirement in Section 25.809(a) for 787-8 airplanes delivered on or 

before December 31, 2013. 

Very truly yours, 

Christine M. Thompson 

Lead Project Administrator, Development Projects 

(425) 266-6572, MC 03-56 

FAX: (425)294-9340 
gL> Page 2 

BDCO-10-01976 

Enclosure: Petition for Exemption from 14 CFR 25.809(a) at Amdt 25-116 

cc 

Name 

Mr. Robert Breneman 

Mr. Ken Schroer 

Mr. Ali Bahrami 

Mr. Frank Tiangsing 

Mr. Jeff Gardlin 

Mr. Don Eiford 

Mr. Robert Kaufman 

Letter 

Paper 

Paper 

Paper 

Paper 

EDT 

EDT 

EDT 

Enclosures 

Paper 

Paper 

Paper 

Paper 

EDT 

EDT 

EDT 

Comments 

ANM-IOOS 

ANM-IOOS 

ANM-lOO 

ANM-115 

ANM-115 

ANM-150S 

ANM-150S 
Enclosure to BDCO-10-01976 

Page 1 of4 

Petition for Exemption from Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) section 

25.809(a) at Amendment 25-116 

Name and Address of the Petitioner 

CM. Thompson, Manager, Lead Project Administrator, Development Projects 

The Boeing Company, 

PO Box 3707, 

Seattle, Washington, 98124 

B, Section of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFRs) that are affected 

As provided for in 14 CFR 11.61(b), Boeing hereby petitions for exemption to the 

following CFR for the Model 787-8: 

Regulation 

14 CFR 

25.809(a) 

Amendment 

116 

Which Requires 

...each emergency exit must have means to permit viewing of the 

conditions outside the exit when the exit is closed. ...Means must 

also be provided to permit viewing of the likely areas of evacuee 

ground contact. The likely areas of evacuee ground contact must be 

viewable during all lighting conditions with the landing gear extended 

as well as in all conditions of landing gear collapse. 

The extent of relief being sought 

Regulation 

14 CFR 

25.809(a) at 

Amendment 

116 

Requires 

The likely areas of 

evacuee ground 

contact must be 

viewable during all 

lighting conditions 

prior to door 

opening. 

Why Relief is Necessary 

The outside viewing means at the passenger cabin emergency 

exits are compliant with §25.809(a) except that there is no 

exterior lighting system that illuminates prior to the exit being 

opened. Therefore, the likely areas of evacuee ground contact 

may not be viewable in night time conditions prior to the exit 

being opened. The design of existing 787-8 escape slidemounted exterior emergency lighting system was established 

before Amendment 25-116 became effective for the 787 

program. Furthermore, the FAA recently formalized guidance 

regarding an acceptable method of showing a new exterior 

lighting system compliant with the outside viewing requirements 

in §25.809(a) at Amendment 25-116. Therefore, it would create 

a significant burden if Boeing were required to incorporate a 

new exterior emergency lighting system on the early production 

787-8 airplanes. 

DescriDtion of relief souaht: With this oetition for exemption. 

Boeing is requesting relief from the requirement that the likely 

areas of evacuee ground contact must be viewable during all 

lighting conditions prior to the passenger emergency exits being 

opened for a limited number of 787-8 airplanes. This will allow 

sufficient time to develop, certify and incorporate into production 

a new exterior lighting system that will enable all subsequently 

manufactured 787-8 airplanes to fully comply with §25.809(a) at 

Amendment 25-116. Boeing will have the new exterior lighting 

system incorporated into 787-8 production line prior to the end 

of 2013. 
Enclosure to BDCO-10-01976 

Page 2 of4 

D. Description of the Issue 

The Model 787-8 certification basis was initially established at Amendment 25-112. 

Boeing subsequently volunteered to comply with amendments through 25-116 and 

certain later amendments up to Amendment 25-128 with some exceptions. Boeing 

had initially elected to keep the certification basis for §25.809(a) at Amendment 25-

115 since the exterior emergency lighting system was already established as an 

integral feature to the escape slides. However, as a result of schedule changes to 

the planned type certification date of the Model 787-8, Boeing is now obligated by 

§21.17(d) to include §25.809(a) at Amendment 25-116 in the certification basis of 

the Model 787-8. This was necessary because the effective date of this amendment 

now falls outside the 5-year type certification application window for a transport 

category aircraft. 

Production of the initial 787-8 airplanes started prior to §25.809(a) at Amendment 

25-116 being added to the model's certification basis. Boeing's previous petition for 

exemption from §25.809(a) at Amendment 25-116 for the Model 787 was denied by 

the FAA. However, in Denial of Exemption No. 9957, the FAA acknowledged that 

there may be merit to an exemption that covers a limited number of 787-8 airplanes. 

As a result, Boeing has reconsidered its position and is now requesting relief from 

the "all lighting conditions" element of §25.809(a) for a limited number of 787-8 

airplanes. If granted, this exemption will allow sufficient time for Boeing to develop, 

certify and incorporate into production a new exterior lighting system that is 

compliant with §25.809(a) at Amendment 25-116. Note: this request for partial relief 

is specific to the 787-8 model since a fully compliant exterior viewing lighting system 

is planned for all 787-9 airplanes. 

As a result of discussions with the FAA and the recent release of the FAA method of 

compliance guidance for the Model 787, the exterior viewing lighting system 

requirements have been clarified and are now understood. Boeing has released a 

specification control document for the new system and is currently completing the 

supplier selection process. Once selected, the supplier will assist Boeing with the 

development, qualification and certification of the new fuselage-mounted exterior 

viewing lighting system. Development and incorporation of a new emergency 

lighting system, which will take several years, normally occurs during the 

development phase of a new airplane program. The 787 will experience added 

complexities and schedule challenges as integration of the new lighting system must 

be incurred during the production ramp-up stage of the program. The new lighting 

system must be compatible with the 787's advanced system architecture, newtechnology power supplies and aircraft software, as well as new structural materials. 

Since production airplane availability coupled with systems integration, on-aircraft 

testing and certification phases can significantly impact the schedule, Boeing is 

pursuing alternative off-aircraft test methods to minimize the amount of actual 

testing that is required on a production aircraft. This approach will ensure that the 

new system can be fully certified and incorporated into production as early as 

possible in the 2013 time frame. 

As noted in Denial of Exemption No. 9957 mentioned above, the FAA recognizes 

that a retrofit of an existing design to comply with the outside viewing requirements 

in §25.809(a) could be costly. This was acknowledged when Amendment 25-116 
Enclosure to BDCO-10-01976 

Page 3 of4 

was initially proposed and adopted and considered in the decision for no retrofit 

requirements for in-service aircraft. In addition, implementation of provisions for the 

exterior lightning system and associated penetrations must be incorporated in the 

build process well before rollout. A number of airplanes are complete and 

production will continue prior to the availability of the lighting system provisions and 

penetration definitions. As such, Boeing requests that there be no retrofit 

requirement for the 787-8 airplanes delivered without the new exterior viewing 

lighting system. 

Statement of No Adverse affect on Safety 

The FAA's stated intent with the new outside viewing requirements introduced at 

Amendment 25-116 was not to address a known safety issue, but rather to upgrade 

the regulations to improve the overall level of safety in areas where the state-of-theart and good design practice have indicated that such upgrades are warranted. 

The 787 was originally designed with large passenger door windows in combination 

with an escape slide-mounted exterior emergency lighting systems that are similar to 

the exterior lighting systems commonly used in many transport category aircraft type 

certified prior to the 787-8. The large 787-8 passenger door windows provide for a 

wide, undistorted viewing area and are an effective means for quickly assessing 

conditions outside the emergency exit prior to the emergency exit being opened. 

The 787 passenger door windows are nearly 500% larger than the vast majority of 

exit door windows in service today. Larger windows make it easier to recognize the 

presence of an external fire or other hazards that should be considered when 

determining whether or not to open the exit during an emergency. Therefore, the 

proposed limited number of 787-8 airplanes that will be operated without the new 

fuselage-mounted exterior emergency lighting system will provide a level of safety 

that is superior to that provided on many of the transport category aircraft currently 

in production. 

Statement of Public Interest 

Granting this petition is in the public's interest because it would allow adequate time 

for Boeing and its supplier to develop an effective design solution to the exterior 

lighting system requirement that became applicable to the Model 787 after the 

airplane development program completed firm configuration of the 787. Conversely, 

if the requested relief is not granted, the addition of a new fuselage-mounted lighting 

system at this late stage of the airplane development program would lead to a 

significant delay to the deliveries of Model 787-8 airplanes. The public interest will 

be advanced by the grant of Exemption as it is in the best economic interest of the 

United States. Many 787 customers are overseas. Further delivery delays of the 

787-8 are not in the interest of the public due to the potential negative impact to 

export sales, the balance-of-trade, the gross domestic product and economic health 

of the United States. 
Enclosure to BDCO-10-01976 

Page 4 of 4 

Request for Waiver of Publication 

The petitioner requests that this petition for exemption not be delayed by the public 

process since there is good cause to waive the publication and comment 

requirements as allowed by §11.87. 

Due to the scheduled delivery of the first 787-8 being in early 2011, a delay in 

processing this exemption could potentially result in a delay of the 787-8's entry 

into service. Additionally, there were no pubic comments received in the previous 

petition for full exemption for the Model 787, wherein the FAA acknowledged that 

there may be merit to an exemption that covers a limited number of 787-8 airplanes 

(Denial of Exemption No 9957). Since no comments were received for the previous 

full exemption petition, it is anticipated no comments would be received for this 

limited petition for exemption. 

H. Privileges of this Exemption Outside the United States 

Per 14 CFR 11.81(h), Boeing requests that the privileges of this Exemption be 

extended outside the United States. This extension of privileges is necessary for 

operations based within foreign countries having bilateral agreements with the 

United States accepting FAA 14 CFR Part 25 as their ainworthiness standards for 

transport category aircraft. The 787-8 is intended for the global market place with a 

launch customer based in a country utilizing the United States ainworthiness 

standards. 

I. Conclusion 

All Model 787-8 passenger doors have outside viewing windows that are sized and 

positioned to allow for a quick assessment of external conditions. This includes the 

area where the evacuees would normally be expected to make contact with the 

ground when the airplane is positioned at a normal attitude or at the adverse 

attitudes that correspond to the loss of one or more legs of landing gear. The large 

size of the 787-8 door windows, compared to the majority of emergency exit 

windows in service today, allows for ground viewing without the need for a prism or 

any other viewing aids that can distort the view out of the window. As discussed 

above, passenger and crew safety will not be appreciably affected by a grant of 

exemption in this case. Since Amendment 25-116 became effective for the 787 

program after the existing 787 emergency lighting system design was established, 

and §25.809(a) at Amendment 25-116 was only recently added to the certification 

basis of the 787-8, additional time is needed to develop a new exterior lighting 

system that will allow the 787-8 passenger exits to fully comply with the outside 

viewing requirements in §25.809(a) at Amendment 25-116. Accordingly, Boeing 

respectfully requests that an exemption is granted to allow relief from the "all 

lighting conditions" requirement in §25.809(a) at Amendment 25-116 for 787-8 

airplanes delivered on or before December 31, 2013.