66760 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 216 / Wednesday, November 7, 2012 / Proposed Rules 

using Boeing Alert Service Bulletin 737– 

53A1255, Revision 1, dated November 7, 

2011, which is not incorporated by reference 

in this AD. 

(n) Alternative Methods of Compliance 

(AMOCs) 

(1) The Manager, Seattle Aircraft 

Certification Office (ACO), FAA, has the 

authority to approve AMOCs for this AD, if 

requested using the procedures found in 14 

CFR 39.19. In accordance with 14 CFR 39.19, 

send your request to your principal inspector 

or local Flight Standards District Office, as 

appropriate. If sending information directly 

to the manager of the ACO, send it to the 

attention of the person identified in the 

Related Information section of this AD. 

Information may be emailed to: 9–ANMSeattle-ACO-AMOC-Requests@faa.gov. 

(2) Before using any approved AMOC, 

notify your appropriate principal inspector, 

or lacking a principal inspector, the manager 

of the local flight standards district office/ 

certificate holding district office. 

(3) An AMOC that provides an acceptable 

level of safety may be used for any repair 

required by this AD if it is approved by the 

Boeing Commercial Airplanes Organization 

Designation Authorization (ODA) that has 

been authorized by the Manager, Seattle 

ACO, to make those findings. For a repair 

method to be approved, the repair must meet 

the certification basis of the airplane, and the 

approval must specifically refer to this AD. 

(4) AMOCs approved for paragraphs (a), 

(b), (c), (d), and (e) of AD 2002–07–08, 

Amendment 39–12702 (67 FR 17917, April 

12, 2002) before the effective date of this AD, 

are approved for the corresponding 

requirements of paragraphs (g), (i), and (k) of 

this AD. 

(5) As of the effective date of this AD, any 

AMOCs approved for paragraphs (g) and (i) 

of this AD are approved as AMOCs for the 

corresponding requirements of paragraphs 

(a), (b), (c), (d), and (e) of AD 2002–07–08, 

Amendment 39–12702 (67 FR 17917, April 

12, 2002). 

(o) Related Information 

(1) For more information about this AD, 

contact Wayne Lockett, Aerospace Engineer, 

Airframe Branch, ANM–120S, FAA, Seattle 

Aircraft Certification Office, 1601 Lind 

Avenue SW., Renton, WA 98057–3356; 

phone: 425–917–6447; fax: 425–917–6590; 

email: wayne.lockett@faa.gov. 

(2) For service information identified in 

this AD, contact Boeing Commercial 

Airplanes, Attention: Data & Services 

Management, P.O. Box 3707, MC 2H–65, 

Seattle, WA 98124–2207; telephone 206– 

544–5000, extension 1; fax 206–766–5680; 

Internet https://www.myboeingfleet.com.You 

may review copies of the referenced service 

information at the FAA, Transport Airplane 

Directorate, 1601 Lind Avenue SW., Renton, 

WA. For information on the availability of 

this material at the FAA, call 425–227–1221. 

Issued in Renton, Washington, on October 

31, 2012. 

Ali Bahrami, 

Manager, Transport Airplane Directorate, 

Aircraft Certification Service. 

[FR Doc. 2012–27141 Filed 11–6–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 39 

[Docket No. FAA–2012–1162; Directorate 

Identifier 2012–NM–002–AD] 

RIN 2120–AA64 

Airworthiness Directives; Airbus 

Airplanes 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking 

(NPRM). 

SUMMARY: We propose to adopt a new 

airworthiness directive (AD) for all 

Airbus Model A330–200 Freighter, 

A330–200, A330–300, A340–200, A340– 

300, A340–500, and A340–600 series 

airplanes. This proposed AD was 

prompted by several reports of a 

burning smell and/or smoke in the 

cockpit during cruise phase leading, in 

some cases, to diversion to alternate 

airports. This proposed AD would 

require an inspection to identify the 

installed windshields and replacement 

of any affected windshield. We are 

proposing this AD to prevent 

significantly increased workload for the 

flightcrew, which could, under some 

flight phases and/or circumstances, 

constitute an unsafe condition. 

DATES: We must receive comments on 

this proposed AD by December 24, 

2012. 

ADDRESSES: You may send comments by 

any of the following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

instructions for submitting comments. 

• Fax: (202) 493–2251. 

• Mail: U.S. Department of 

Transportation, Docket Operations, M– 

30, West Building Ground Floor, Room 

W12–140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., 

Washington, DC 20590. 

• Hand Delivery: U.S. Department of 

Transportation, Docket Operations, M– 

30, West Building Ground Floor, Room 

W12–140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., 

Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 

p.m., Monday through Friday, except 

Federal holidays. 

For service information identified in 

this proposed AD, contact Airbus SAS— 

Airworthiness Office—EAL, 1 Rond 

Point Maurice Bellonte, 31707 Blagnac 

Cedex, France; telephone +33 5 61 93 36 

96; fax +33 5 61 93 45 80; email 

airworthiness.A330–A340@airbus.com; 

Internet http://www.airbus.com. You 

may review copies of the referenced 

service information at the FAA, 

Transport Airplane Directorate, 1601 

Lind Avenue SW., Renton, Washington. 

For information on the availability of 

this material at the FAA, call 425–227– 

1221. 

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 in 

the ADDRESSES section. Comments will 

be available in the AD docket shortly 

after receipt. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Vladimir Ulyanov, Aerospace Engineer, 

International Branch, ANM–116, 

Transport Airplane Directorate, FAA, 

1601 Lind Avenue SW., Renton, WA 

98057–3356; telephone (425) 227–1138; 

fax (425) 227–1149. 

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–2012–1162; Directorate Identifier 

2012–NM–002–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 we receive 

about this proposed AD. 

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 2011–0242, 

dated December 19, 2011 (corrected 

February 15, 2012), (referred to after this 


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as ‘‘the MCAI’’), to correct an unsafe 

condition for the specified products. 

The MCAI states: 

Several operators have reported cases of 

burning smell and/or smoke in the cockpit 

during cruise phase leading in some cases to 

diversion. 

Findings have shown that the cause of 

these events is the burning of the SaintGobain Sully (SGS) windshield connector 

terminal block. 

This condition, if not corrected, could 

significantly increase the flight crew 

workload which would, under some flight 

phases and/or circumstances, constitute an 

unsafe condition. 

For the reasons described above, this 

[EASA] AD requires the identification of the 

installed windshields and replacement of the 

affected part. 

* * * * * 

You may obtain further information by 

examining the MCAI in the AD docket. 

Relevant Service Information 

Airbus has issued the following 

service bulletins. 

• Airbus Service Bulletin A330–56– 

3009, Revision 01, including 

Appendices 01, 02, and 03, dated 

January 27, 2011 (for Model A330–201, 

–202, –203, –223, –223F, –243, –243F, 

–301, –302, –303, –321, –322, –323, 

–341, –342, and –343 airplanes). 

• Airbus Service Bulletin A340–56– 

4008, including Appendices 01, 02, and 

03, dated May 4, 2010 (for Model A340– 

211, –212, –213, –311, –312, and –313 

airplanes). 

• Airbus Service Bulletin A340–56– 

5002, including Appendices 01, 02, and 

03, dated May 4, 2010 (for Model A340– 

541 and –642 airplanes). 

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 another 

country, and is approved for operation 

in the United States. Pursuant to our 

bilateral agreement with the State of 

Design Authority, we have been notified 

of the unsafe condition described in the 

MCAI and service information 

referenced above. We are proposing this 

AD because we evaluated all pertinent 

information and determined an 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 55 products of U.S. registry. 

We also estimate that it would take 

about 2 work-hours per product to 

comply with the basic requirements of 

this proposed AD. The average labor 

rate is $85 per work-hour. Based on 

these figures, we estimate the cost of the 

proposed AD on U.S. operators to be 

$9,350, or $170 per product. 

In addition, we estimate that any 

necessary follow-on actions would take 

about 10 work-hours and require parts 

costing $0, for a cost of $850 per 

product. Where the service information 

lists required parts costs that are 

covered under warranty, we have 

assumed that there will be no charge for 

these parts. As we do not control 

warranty coverage for affected parties, 

some parties may incur costs higher 

than estimated here. We have no way of 

determining the number of products 

that may need these actions. 

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); 

3. Will not affect intrastate aviation in 

Alaska; and 

4. 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. 

§ 39.13 [Amended] 

2. The FAA amends § 39.13 by adding 

the following new AD: 

Airbus: Docket No. FAA–2012–1162; 

Directorate Identifier 2012–NM–002–AD. 

(a) Comments Due Date 

We must receive comments by December 

24, 2012. 

(b) Affected ADs 

None. 

(c) Applicability 

This AD applies to airplanes identified in 

paragraphs (c)(1) and (c)(2) of this AD, 

certificated in any category, all manufacturer 

serial numbers. 

(1) Airbus Model A330–201, –202, –203, 

–223, –223F, –243, –243F, –301, –302, –303, 

–321, –322, –323, –341, –342, and –343 

airplanes. 

(2) Airbus Model A340–211, –212, –213, 

–311, –312, –313, –541, and –642 airplanes. 

(d) Subject 

Air Transport Association (ATA) of 

America Code 56, Windows. 

(e) Reason 

This AD was prompted by several reports 

of a burning smell and/or smoke in the 

cockpit during cruise phase leading, in some 

cases, to diversion to alternate airports. We 

are proposing this AD to prevent significantly 

increased workload for the flightcrew, which 

could, under some flight phases and/or 

circumstances, constitute an unsafe 

condition. 

(f) Compliance 

You are responsible for having the actions 

required by this AD performed within the 

compliance times specified, unless the 

actions have already been done. 

(g) Inspection 

Within 1,200 flight hours after the effective 

date of this AD, inspect to identify the 


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manufacturer, the part number, and the serial 

number of the left-hand (LH) and right-hand 

(RH) windshields installed on the airplane, 

in accordance with the Accomplishment 

Instructions of the applicable Airbus service 

information identified in paragraph (g)(1), 

(g)(2), or (g)(3) of this AD. A review of 

airplane delivery or maintenance records is 

acceptable in lieu of this inspection if the 

manufacturer, part number, and serial 

number of the installed windshields can be 

conclusively determined from that review. 

(1) For Model A330–201, –202, –203, –223, 

–223F, –243, –243F, –301, –302, –303, –321, 

–322, –323, –341, –342, and –343 airplanes: 

Airbus Service Bulletin A330–56–3009, 

Revision 01, including Appendix 01, 

excluding Appendices 02 and 03, dated 

January 27, 2011. 

(2) For Model A340–211, –212, –213, –311, 

–312, and –313 airplanes: Airbus Service 

Bulletin A340–56–4008, including Appendix 

01, excluding Appendices 02 and 03, dated 

May 4, 2010. 

(3) For Model A340–541 and –642 

airplanes: Airbus Service Bulletin A340–56– 

5002, including Appendix 01, excluding 

Appendices 02 and 03, dated May 4, 2010. 

(h) Replacement 

If it is found during the inspection required 

by paragraph (g) of this AD that any installed 

LH or RH windshield was manufactured by 

Saint-Gobain Sully (SGS) and the part 

number and serial number are identified in 

the applicable Airbus service information 

identified in paragraph (g)(1), (g)(2), or (g)(3) 

of this AD: Within 9 months or 1,200 flight 

hours after the effective date of this AD, 

whichever occurs first, replace all affected 

LH and RH windshields, in accordance with 

the Accomplishment Instructions of the 

applicable Airbus service information 

identified in paragraph (h)(1), (h)(2), or (h)(3) 

of this AD. 

(1) For Model A330–201, –202, –203, –223, 

–223F, –243, –243F, –301, –302, –303, –321, 

–322, –323, –341, –342, and –343 airplanes: 

Airbus Service Bulletin A330–56–3009, 

Revision 01, including Appendix 01, 

excluding Appendices 02 and 03, dated 

January 27, 2011. 

(2) For Model A340–211, –212, –213, –311, 

–312, and –313 airplanes: Airbus Service 

Bulletin A340–56–4008, including Appendix 

01, excluding Appendices 02 and 03, dated 

May 4, 2010. 

(3) For Model A340–541 and –642 

airplanes: Airbus Service Bulletin A340–56– 

5002, including Appendix 01, excluding 

Appendices 02 and 03, dated May 4, 2010. 

(i) Credit for Previous Actions 

This paragraph provides credit for the 

actions required by paragraphs (g) and (h) of 

this AD for Model A330–201, –202, –203, 

–223, –223F, –243, –243F, –301, –302, –303, 

–321, –322, –323, –341, –342, and –343 

airplanes, if those actions were performed 

before the effective date of this AD using 

Airbus Service Bulletin A330–56–3009, 

dated May 4, 2010, which is not incorporated 

by reference in this AD. 

(j) Parts Installation Limitation 

As of the effective date of this AD, do not 

install on an airplane any affected 

windshield from SGS and having a part 

number and serial number as identified in 

the applicable service information identified 

in paragraphs (j)(1), (j)(2), and (j)(3) of this 

AD, unless a suffix ‘‘U’’ is present at the end 

of the S/N. 

(1) For Model A330–201, –202, –203, –223, 

–223F, –243, –243F, –301, –302, –303, –321, 

–322, –323, –341, –342, and –343 airplanes: 

Airbus Service Bulletin A330–56–3009, 

Revision 01, including Appendix 01, 

excluding Appendices 02 and 03, dated 

January 27, 2011. 

(2) For Model A340–211, –212, –213, –311, 

–312, and –313 airplanes: Airbus Service 

Bulletin A340–56–4008, including Appendix 

01, excluding Appendices 02 and 03, dated 

May 4, 2010. 

(3) For Model A340–541 and –642 

airplanes: Airbus Service Bulletin A340–56– 

5002, including Appendix 01, excluding 

Appendices 02 and 03, dated May 4, 2010. 

(k) Other FAA AD Provisions 

The following provisions also apply to this 

AD: 

(1) Alternative Methods of Compliance 

(AMOCs): The Manager, International 

Branch, ANM–116, Transport Airplane 

Directorate, FAA, has the authority to 

approve AMOCs for this AD, if requested 

using the procedures found in 14 CFR 39.19. 

In accordance with 14 CFR 39.19, send your 

request to your principal inspector or local 

Flight Standards District Office, as 

appropriate. If sending information directly 

to the International Branch, send it to ATTN: 

Vladimir Ulyanov, Aerospace Engineer, 

International Branch, ANM–116, Transport 

Airplane Directorate, FAA, 1601 Lind 

Avenue SW., Renton, WA 98057–3356; 

telephone (425) 227–1138; fax (425) 227– 

1149. Information may be emailed to: 9- 

ANM-116-AMOC-REQUESTS@faa.gov. 

Before using any approved AMOC, notify 

your appropriate principal inspector, or 

lacking a principal inspector, the manager of 

the local flight standards district office/ 

certificate holding district office. The AMOC 

approval letter must specifically reference 

this AD. 

(2) Airworthy Product: For any 

requirement in this AD to obtain corrective 

actions from a manufacturer or other source, 

use these actions if they are FAA-approved. 

Corrective actions are considered FAAapproved if they are approved by the State 

of Design Authority (or their delegated 

agent). You are required to assure the product 

is airworthy before it is returned to service. 

(l) Related Information 

(1) Refer to MCAI European Aviation 

Safety Agency Airworthiness Directive 2011– 

0242, dated December 19, 2011 (corrected 

February 15, 2012), and the service 

information identified in paragraphs (k)(1)(i) 

through (k)(1)(iii) of this AD, for related 

information. 

(i) Airbus Service Bulletin A330-56–3009, 

Revision 01, including Appendix 01, 

excluding Appendices 02 and 03, dated 

January 27, 2011. 

(ii) Airbus Service Bulletin A340–56–4008, 

including Appendix 01, excluding 

Appendices 02 and 03, dated May 4, 2010. 

(iii) Airbus Service Bulletin A340–56– 

5002, including Appendix 01, excluding 

Appendices 02 and 03, dated May 4, 2010. 

(2) For service information identified in 

this AD, contact Airbus SAS—Airworthiness 

Office—EAL, 1 Rond Point Maurice Bellonte, 

31707 Blagnac Cedex, France; telephone +33 

5 61 93 36 96; fax +33 5 61 93 45 80; email 

airworthiness.A330–A340@airbus.com; 

Internet http://www.airbus.com. You may 

review copies of the referenced service 

information at the FAA, Transport Airplane 

Directorate, 1601 Lind Avenue SW., Renton, 

Washington. For information on the 

availability of this material at the FAA, call 

425–227–1221. 

Issued in Renton, Washington, on October 

31, 2012. 

Ali Bahrami, 

Manager, Transport Airplane Directorate, 

Aircraft Certification Service. 

[FR Doc. 2012–27142 Filed 11–6–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 39 

[Docket No. FAA–2012–1159; Directorate 

Identifier 2012–NM–028–AD] 

RIN 2120–AA64 

Airworthiness Directives; Airbus 

Airplanes 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking 

(NPRM). 

SUMMARY: We propose to adopt a new 

airworthiness directive (AD) for certain 

Airbus Model A310–203, –204, –222, 

–304, –322, and –324 airplanes. This 

proposed AD was prompted by a design 

review of the fuel tank access covers 

and analyses comparing compliance of 

the access covers to different tire burst 

models. ‘Type 21’ panels located within 

the debris zone revealed that they could 

not sustain the impact of the tire debris. 

This proposed AD would require 

modifying the wing manhole surrounds 

and replacing certain fuel access panels. 

We are proposing this AD to prevent a 

possibility of a fire due to tire debris 

impact on the fuel access panels. 

DATES: We must receive comments on 

this proposed AD by December 24, 

2012. 

ADDRESSES: You may send comments by 

any of the following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

instructions for submitting comments. 

• Fax: (202) 493–2251. 

• Mail: U.S. Department of 

Transportation, Docket Operations, M– 


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