17310 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 62 / Wednesday, April 1, 2015 / Rules and Regulations 

date of this rule until 30 days after 

publication in the Federal Register 

because: (1) This action suspends 

restrictions on handlers by continuing 

the previous suspension of Marketing 

Order No. 953; (2) this rule provides a 

60-day comment period and any 

comments received will be considered 

prior to the finalization of this rule; (3) 

no useful purpose would be served by 

delaying the continued suspension of 

the order. 

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 953 

Marketing agreements, Potatoes, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements. 

For the reasons set forth in the 

preamble, under the authority of 7 

U.S.C. 601–674, 7 CFR part 953 is 

suspended effective April 2, 2015, 

through March 1, 2017. 

Dated: March 26, 2015. 

Rex A. Barnes, 

Associate Administrator, Agricultural 

Marketing Service. 

[FR Doc. 2015–07320 Filed 3–31–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 23 

[Docket No. FAA–2015–0720; Special 

Conditions No. 23–263–SC] 

Special Conditions: Honda Aircraft 

Company Model HA–420; Single-Place 

Side-Facing Seat Dynamic Test 

Requirements 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), DOT. 

ACTION: Final special conditions; request 

for comments. 

SUMMARY: These special conditions are 

issued for the Honda Aircraft Company 

HA–420 airplane. This airplane will 

have a novel or unusual design 

feature(s) associated with a side-facing 

passenger seat. The applicable 

airworthiness regulations do not contain 

adequate or appropriate safety standards 

for this design feature. These special 

conditions contain the additional safety 

standards that the Administrator 

considers necessary to establish a level 

of safety equivalent to that established 

by the existing airworthiness standards. 

DATES: The effective date of these 

special conditions is April 1, 2015, and 

is applicable on March 25, 2015. We 

must receive your comments by May 1, 

2015. 

ADDRESSES: Send comments identified 

by docket number [FAA–2015–0720] 

using any of the following methods: 

b Federal eRegulations Portal: Go to 

http://www.regulations.gov and follow 

the online instructions for sending your 

comments electronically. 

b Mail: Send comments to Docket 

Operations, M–30, U.S. Department of 

Transportation (DOT), 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue SE., Room W12–140, West 

Building Ground Floor, Washington, 

DC, 20590–0001. 

b Hand Delivery of Courier: Take 

comments to Docket Operations in 

Room W12–140 of the West Building 

Ground Floor at 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue SE., Washington, DC, between 9 

a.m., and 5 p.m., Monday through 

Friday, except Federal holidays. 

b Fax: Fax comments to Docket 

Operations at 202–493–2251. 

Privacy: The FAA will post all 

comments it receives, without change, 

to http://regulations.gov, including any 

personal information the commenter 

provides. Using the search function of 

the docket Web site, anyone can find 

and read the electronic form of all 

comments received into any FAA 

docket, including the name of the 

individual sending the comment (or 

signing the comment for an association, 

business, labor union, etc.). DOT’s 

complete Privacy Act Statement can be 

found in the Federal Register published 

on April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477–19478), 

as well as at http://DocketsInfo.dot.gov. 

Docket: Background documents or 

comments received may be read at 

http://www.regulations.gov at any time. 

Follow the online instructions for 

accessing the docket or go to the Docket 

Operations in Room W12–140 of the 

West Building Ground Floor at 1200 

New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, 

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

through Friday, except Federal holidays. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bob 

Stegeman, Federal Aviation 

Administration, Aircraft Certification 

Service, Small Airplane Directorate, 

ACE–111, 901 Locust, Kansas City, 

Missouri, 816–329–4140, fax 816–329– 

4090, email Robert.Stegeman@faa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The FAA 

has determined, in accordance with 5 

U.S. Code §§ 553(b)(3)(B) and 553(d)(3), 

that notice and opportunity for prior 

public comment hereon are unnecessary 

because the substance of these special 

conditions has been subject to the 

public comment process in several prior 

instances with no substantive comments 

received. The FAA therefore finds that 

good cause exists for making these 

special conditions effective upon 

issuance. 

Special 

condition 

number 

Company/airplane model 

23–255– 

SC.

Embraer Model EMB 500. 

23–251– 

SC.

Embraer Model EMB 500. 

23–105– 

SC.

Sino Swearingen Model SJ130. 

23–254– 

SC.

Embraer Model EMB 505. 

Comments Invited 

We invite interested people to take 

part in this rulemaking by sending 

written comments, data, or views. The 

most helpful comments reference a 

specific portion of the special 

conditions, explain the reason for any 

recommended change, and include 

supporting data. We ask that you send 

us two copies of written comments. 

We will consider all comments we 

receive on or before the closing date for 

comments. We will consider comments 

filed late if it is possible to do so 

without incurring expense or delay. We 

may change these special conditions 

based on the comments we receive. 

Background 

On October 11, 2006, Honda Aircraft 

Company applied for a type certificate 

for their new Model HA–420 aircraft. 

On October 10, 2013, Honda Aircraft 

Company requested an extension with 

an effective application date of October 

1, 2013. This extension changed the 

type certification basis to amendment 

23–62. 

The HA–420 is a four to five 

passenger (depending on configuration), 

two crew, lightweight business jet with 

a 43,000-foot service ceiling and a 

maximum takeoff weight of 9963 

pounds. The airplane is powered by two 

GE-Honda Aero Engines (GHAE) HF– 

120 turbofan engines. 

The HA–420 design incorporates the 

installation of a side-facing belted 

passenger seat as a customer 

configuration option. The implication of 

the term belted is that the passenger seat 

will be used during takeoff and landing 

and so must comply with the provisions 

of §§ 23.562, 23.785, and any additional 

requirements that the FAA determines 

are applicable. In this case, the approval 

of a side-facing seat to these provisions 

is considered new and novel and as 

such will require special conditions and 

specific methods of compliance to 

certificate. 

Type Certification Basis 

Under the provisions of 14 CFR 21.17, 

Honda Aircraft Company must show 

that the HA–420 meets the applicable 

provisions of part 23, as amended by 


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Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 62 / Wednesday, April 1, 2015 / Rules and Regulations 17311 

amendment 23–1, dated July 29, 1965, 

through amendment 23–62, dated 

December 2, 2011, thereto. 

If the Administrator finds that the 

applicable airworthiness regulations 

(i.e., 14 CFR part 23) do not contain 

adequate or appropriate safety standards 

for the HA–420 because of a novel or 

unusual design feature, special 

conditions are prescribed under the 

provisions of § 21.16. 

In addition to the applicable 

airworthiness regulations and special 

conditions, the HA–420 must comply 

with the fuel vent and exhaust emission 

requirements of 14 CFR part 34 and the 

noise certification requirements of 14 

CFR part 36. In addition, the FAA must 

issue a finding of regulatory adequacy 

under § 611 of Public Law 92–574, the 

‘‘Noise Control Act of 1972.’’ 

The FAA issues special conditions, as 

defined in § 11.19, under § 11.38 and 

they become part of the type 

certification basis under § 21.17(a)(2). 

Special conditions are initially 

applicable to the model for which they 

are issued. Should the type certificate 

for that model be amended later to 

include any other model that 

incorporates the same novel or unusual 

design feature, the special conditions 

would also apply to the other model. 

Novel or Unusual Design Features 

The HA–420 will incorporate the 

following novel or unusual design 

feature: Side facing passenger seat 

intended for taxi/takeoff and landing. 

The seat is to incorporate design 

features that reduce the potential for 

injury in the event of an accident. In a 

severe impact, a 2-point seatbelt and the 

adjacent padded wall will restrain the 

occupant. In addition to the design 

features intended to minimize occupant 

injury during an accident sequence, the 

adjacent forward wall/bulkhead interior 

structure will have padding or at least 

be pliable enough to absorb impact 

energy, which will provide some 

protection to the head of the occupant. 

Discussion 

The Code of Federal Regulations 

states performance criteria for forward 

and aft facing seats and restraints in an 

objective manner. However, none of 

these criteria are adequate to address the 

specific issues raised concerning sidefacing seats. Therefore, the FAA has 

determined that, in addition to the 

requirements of parts 21 and 23, special 

conditions are needed to address the 

installation of this seat installation/

restraint. 

Part 23 was amended August 8, 1988, 

by amendment 23–36, revised the 

emergency landing conditions that must 

be considered in the design of the 

airplane. Amendment 23–36 revised the 

static load conditions in § 23.561 and 

added a new § 23.562 that required 

dynamic testing for all seats approved 

for occupancy during takeoff and 

landing. The intent of amendment 23– 

36 is to provide an improved level of 

safety for occupants on part 23 

airplanes. Because most seating is 

forward-facing in part 23 airplanes, the 

pass/fail criteria developed in 

amendment 23–36 focused primarily on 

these forward- and aft-facing seats. 

Since the regulations do not address 

side-facing seats, these criteria should 

be documented in special conditions. 

The FAA decision to review 

compliance with these regulations stems 

from the fact that the current regulations 

do not provide adequate and 

appropriate standards for the type 

certification of this type of seat. These 

requirements are substantially similar to 

other single place side-facing seat 

installations approved for use on several 

different part 23 and part 25 aircraft. 

Accordingly, these special conditions 

are for the Honda Aircraft Company 

model HA–420 side-facing seat location. 

Other conditions may be developed, as 

needed, based on further FAA review 

and discussions with the manufacturer 

and civil aviation authorities. 

Applicability 

As discussed above, these special 

conditions are applicable to the HA– 

420. Should Honda Aircraft Company 

apply at a later date for a change to the 

type certificate to include another 

model incorporating the same novel or 

unusual design feature, the special 

conditions would apply to that model as 

well. 

Conclusion 

This action affects only certain novel 

or unusual design features on one model 

of airplane. It is not a rule of general 

applicability and it affects only the 

applicant who applied to the FAA for 

approval of these features on the 

airplane. 

The substance of these special 

conditions has been subjected to the 

notice and comment period in several 

prior instances, identified above, and 

has been derived without substantive 

change from those previously issued. It 

is unlikely that prior public comment 

would result in a significant change 

from the substance contained herein. 

Therefore, notice and opportunity for 

prior public comment hereon are 

unnecessary and the FAA finds good 

cause, in accordance with 5 U.S. Code 

§§ 553(b)(3)(B) and 553(d)(3), making 

these special conditions effective upon 

issuance. The FAA is requesting 

comments to allow interested persons to 

submit views that may not have been 

submitted in response to the prior 

opportunities for comment described 

above. 

List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 23 

Aircraft, Aviation safety, Signs and 

symbols. 

Citation 

The authority citation for these 

special conditions is as follows: 

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 106(g), 40113 and 

44701; 14 CFR 21.16 and 21.101; and 14 CFR 

11.38 and 11.19. 

The Special Conditions 

Accordingly, pursuant to the 

authority delegated to me by the 

Administrator, the following special 

conditions are issued as part of the type 

certification basis for Honda Aircraft 

Company model HA–420 airplanes. 

1. Single-Place Side-Facing Seat 

In addition to the airworthiness 

standards in §§ 23.562, amendment 23– 

50 and 23.785, amendment 23–49, the 

following special condition provides 

injury criteria and installation/testing 

guidelines that represent the minimum 

acceptable airworthiness standard for 

single-place side-facing seats: 

a. The Injury Criteria 

(1) Existing Criteria: All injury 

protection criteria of § 23.562(c)(1) 

through (c)(7) apply to the occupant of 

a side-facing seat. Head Injury Criterion 

(HIC) assessments are only required for 

head contact with the seat and/or 

adjacent structures. 

(2) Body-to-Wall/Furnishing Contact: 

The seat must be installed aft of a 

structure such as an interior wall or 

furnishing that will support the pelvis, 

upper arm, chest, and head of an 

occupant seated next to the structure. A 

conservative representation of the 

structure and its stiffness must be 

included in the tests. It is 

recommended, but not required, that the 

contact surface of this structure be 

covered with at least two inches of 

energy absorbing protective padding 

(foam or equivalent), such as Ensolite. 

(3) Thoracic Trauma: Thoracic 

Trauma Index (TTI) injury criterion 

must be substantiated by dynamic test 

or by rational analysis based on 

previous test(s) of a similar seat 

installation. Testing must be conducted 

with a Side Impact Dummy (SID), as 

defined by 49 CFR part 572, subpart F, 

or its equivalent. TTI must be less than 

85, as defined in 49 CFR part 572, 

subpart F. SID TTI data must be 


rmajette on DSK2TPTVN1PROD with RULES
17312 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 62 / Wednesday, April 1, 2015 / Rules and Regulations 

processed as defined in Federal Motor 

Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) part 

571.214, section S6.13.5. 

(4) Pelvis: Pelvic lateral acceleration 

must be shown by dynamic test or by 

rational analysis based on previous 

test(s) of a similar seat installation to not 

exceed 130g. Pelvic acceleration data 

must be processed as defined in FMVSS 

part 571.214, section S6.13.5. 

(5) Shoulder Strap Loads: Where 

upper torso straps (shoulder straps) are 

used for occupants, tension loads in 

individual straps must not exceed 1,750 

pounds. If dual straps are used for 

restraining the upper torso, the total 

strap tension loads must not exceed 

2,000 pounds. 

b. General Test Guidelines 

(1) One longitudinal test with the SID 

ATD or its equivalent, un-deformed 

floor, no yaw, and with all lateral 

structural supports (armrests/walls). 

Pass/fail injury assessments: TTI and 

pelvic acceleration. 

(2) One longitudinal test with the 

Hybrid II ATD, deformed floor, with 10 

degrees yaw, and with all lateral 

structural supports (armrests/walls). 

Pass/fail injury assessments: HIC; and 

upper torso restraint load, restraint 

system retention and pelvic 

acceleration. 

(3) A vertical (15 G’s) test is to be 

conducted with modified Hybrid II 

ATDs using existing pass/fail criteria. 

Issued in Kansas City, Missouri on March 

25, 2015. 

Pat Mullen, 

Acting Manager, Small Airplane Directorate, 

Aircraft Certification Service. 

[FR Doc. 2015–07503 Filed 3–31–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 23 

[Docket No. FAA–2015–0723; Special 

Conditions No. 23–264–SC] 

Special Conditions: Honda Aircraft 

Company (Honda) Model HA–420, 

HondaJet; Full Authority Digital Engine 

Control (FADEC) System 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), DOT. 

ACTION: Final special conditions; request 

for comments. 

SUMMARY: These special conditions are 

issued for the Honda Aircraft Company 

HA–420 airplane. This airplane will 

have a novel or unusual design feature 

associated with the use of an electronic 

engine control system instead of a 

traditional mechanical control system. 

The applicable airworthiness 

regulations do not contain adequate or 

appropriate safety standards for this 

design feature. These special conditions 

contain the additional safety standards 

that the Administrator considers 

necessary to establish a level of safety 

equivalent to that established by the 

existing airworthiness standards. 

DATES: The effective date of these 

special conditions is April 1, 2015, and 

is applicable on March 25, 2015. 

We must receive your comments by 

May 1, 2015. 

ADDRESSES: Send comments identified 

by docket number [FAA–2015–0723] 

using any of the following methods: 

b Federal eRegulations Portal: Go to 

http://www.regulations.gov and follow 

the online instructions for sending your 

comments electronically. 

b Mail: Send comments to Docket 

Operations, M–30, U.S. Department of 

Transportation (DOT), 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue SE., Room W12–140, West 

Building Ground Floor, Washington, 

DC, 20590–0001. 

b Hand Delivery of Courier: Take 

comments to Docket Operations in 

Room W12–140 of the West Building 

Ground Floor at 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue SE., Washington, DC, between 9 

a.m., and 5 p.m., Monday through 

Friday, except Federal holidays. 

b Fax: Fax comments to Docket 

Operations at 202–493–2251. 

Privacy: The FAA will post all 

comments it receives, without change, 

to http://regulations.gov, including any 

personal information the commenter 

provides. Using the search function of 

the docket Web site, anyone can find 

and read the electronic form of all 

comments received into any FAA 

docket, including the name of the 

individual sending the comment (or 

signing the comment for an association, 

business, labor union, etc.). DOT’s 

complete Privacy Act Statement can be 

found in the Federal Register published 

on April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477–19478), 

as well as at http://DocketsInfo.dot.gov. 

Docket: Background documents or 

comments received may be read at 

http://www.regulations.gov at any time. 

Follow the online instructions for 

accessing the docket or go to the Docket 

Operations in Room W12–140 of the 

West Building Ground Floor at 1200 

New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, 

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

through Friday, except Federal holidays. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John 

G. VanHoudt, Federal Aviation 

Administration, Aircraft Certification 

Service, Small Airplane Directorate, 

ACE–111, 901 Locust, Kansas City, 

Missouri 64106; 816–329–4142, fax 

816–329–4090. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The FAA 

has determined, in accordance with 5 

U.S. Code §§ 553(b)(3)(B) and 553(d)(3), 

that notice and opportunity for prior 

public comment hereon are unnecessary 

because the substance of these special 

conditions has been subject to the 

public comment process in several prior 

instances with no substantive comments 

received. The FAA therefore finds that 

good cause exists for making these 

special conditions effective upon 

issuance. 

Special 

condition 

number 

Company/airplane model 

23–237– 

SC.

Spectrum Aeronautical Model S– 

40. 

23–246– 

SC.

Cirrus Design Corporation Model 

SF50. 

23–253– 

SC.

Diamond Aircraft Industries Model 

DA–40NG. 

Comments Invited 

We invite interested people to take 

part in this rulemaking by sending 

written comments, data, or views. The 

most helpful comments reference a 

specific portion of the special 

conditions, explain the reason for any 

recommended change, and include 

supporting data. We ask that you send 

us two copies of written comments. 

We will consider all comments we 

receive on or before the closing date for 

comments. We will consider comments 

filed late if it is possible to do so 

without incurring expense or delay. We 

may change these special conditions 

based on the comments we receive. 

Background 

On October 11, 2006, Honda Aircraft 

Company applied for a type certificate 

for their new Model HA–420. On 

October 10, 2013, Honda Aircraft 

Company requested an extension with 

an effective application date of October 

1, 2013. This extension changed the 

type certification basis to amendment 

23–62. 

The HA–420 is a four to five 

passenger (depending on configuration), 

two crew, lightweight business jet with 

a 43,000-foot service ceiling and a 

maximum takeoff weight of 9963 

pounds. The airplane is powered by two 

GE-Honda Aero Engines (GHAE) HF– 

120 turbofan engines. 

The HA–420 airplane will use an 

electronic engine control system 

(FADEC) instead of a traditional 

mechanical control system. Even though 

the engine control system will be 


rmajette on DSK2TPTVN1PROD with RULES