Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 33 / Tuesday, February 19, 2013 / Rules and Regulations 11569 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 39 

[Docket No. FAA–2010–0547; Directorate 

Identifier 2009–NM–234–AD; Amendment 

39–17354; AD 2013–03–20] 

RIN 2120–AA64 

Airworthiness Directives; The Boeing 

Company Airplanes 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), DOT. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: We are adopting a new 

airworthiness directive (AD) for all The 

Boeing Company Model 757 airplanes. 

This AD was prompted by reports of 

fuel leaking from the front spar of the 

wing through the slat track housing. 

This AD requires a detailed inspection 

of the inboard and outboard main slat 

track downstop assemblies and a torque 

application to the main track downstop 

assembly nuts of slat numbers 1 through 

10, excluding the outboard track of slats 

1 and 10; a detailed inspection of all slat 

track housings for foreign object debris 

(FOD) and visible damage; and 

corrective actions if necessary. We are 

issuing this AD to detect and correct 

incorrectly installed main slat track 

downstop assemblies, which, when the 

slat is retracted, could cause a puncture 

in the slat track housing and lead to a 

fuel leak and potential fire. 

DATES: This AD is effective March 26, 

2013. 

The Director of the Federal Register 

approved the incorporation by reference 

of a certain publication listed in the AD 

as of March 26, 2013. 

ADDRESSES: 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; 

phone: 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. 

Examining the AD Docket 

You may examine the AD docket on 

the Internet at http:// 

www.regulations.gov; or in person at the 

Docket Management Facility between 9 

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

Friday, except Federal holidays. The AD 

docket contains this AD, the regulatory 

evaluation, any comments received, and 

other information. The address for the 

Docket Office (phone: 800–647–5527) is 

Document Management Facility, U.S. 

Department of Transportation, Docket 

Operations, M–30, West Building 

Ground Floor, Room W12–140, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, 

DC 20590. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Nancy Marsh, Aerospace Engineer, 

Airframe Branch, ANM–120S, Seattle 

Aircraft Certification Office (ACO), 

FAA, 1601 Lind Avenue SW., Renton, 

WA 98057–3356; phone: 425–917–6440; 

fax: 425–917–6590; email: 

Nancy.Marsh@faa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Discussion 

We issued a supplemental notice of 

proposed rulemaking (SNPRM) on May 

18, 2012, to amend 14 CFR part 39 to 

include an airworthiness directive that 

would apply to the specified products. 

That SNPRM published in the Federal 

Register on June 1, 2012 (77 FR 32433). 

The original NPRM (75 FR 31327, June 

3, 2010) proposed to require a detailed 

inspection of the inboard and outboard 

main slat track downstop assemblies 

and a torque application to the main 

track downstop assembly nuts of slat 

numbers 1 through 10, excluding the 

outboard track of slats 1 and 10; a 

detailed inspection of all slat track 

housings for FOD and visible damage; 

and corrective actions if necessary. The 

SNPRM proposed to require inspection 

results reporting. 

Comments 

We gave the public the opportunity to 

participate in developing this AD. The 

following presents the comments 

received on the NPRM (77 FR 32433, 

June 1, 2012) and the FAA’s response to 

each comment. 

Support for the SNPRM (77 FR 32433, 

June 1, 2012) 

American Airlines (AAL) stated that it 

has reviewed the SNPRM (77 FR 32433, 

June 1, 2012) and agrees with the intent. 

UPS stated that it concurs with the 

technical reasons for the inspections 

and has been accomplishing those 

inspections since February 2011. 

Requests To Revise Cost Estimate 

AAL and Boeing requested that we 

revise the ‘‘Costs of Compliance’’ 

section of the SNPRM (77 FR 32433, 

June 1, 2012) to account for more hours 

necessary to accomplish the 

inspections. 

AAL stated that it has completed a 

representative sample of affected 

airplanes, and, contrary to the 20 

estimated work-hours to accomplish the 

inspection as specified in the SNPRM 

(77 FR 32433, June 1, 2012), it has been 

taking between 100 and 300 work-hours. 

Boeing stated that it has received 

input from an operator that additional 

time is necessary to clean the grease 

from inside the slat can in order to 

complete the required inspection. 

Boeing stated that the work-hours 

required to accomplish the inspection 

are approximately 80 hours (not 20 

hours, as specified in Boeing Special 

Attention Service Bulletin 757–57– 

0068, Revision 1, dated July 19, 2011 

(which was referred to as the 

appropriate source of service 

information in the SNPRM (77 FR 

32433, June 1, 2012)). 

We agree to change the work-hours 

specified in this AD, but not to the 

extent requested by AAL. We have 

changed the estimated costs specified in 

the AD preamble to 80 work-hours. 

Request To Include Borescope 

Procedures 

AAL stated that it has found that a 

borescope inserted through the drain 

hole located in the front spar below 

each slat track housing opening 

provides easier access and a better view 

of the slat housing interior than the 

proposed detailed inspection. AAL 

stated that it might be of benefit to 

operators to specifically include a 

borescope inspection in the service 

information work instructions. 

We do not agree to change the AD to 

include borescope procedures. Boeing 

Special Attention Service Bulletin 757– 

57–0068, Revision 1, dated July 19, 

2011, does not recommend a specific 

procedure for use of the borescope. We 

have determined that the current 

detailed inspection is adequate to 

address the identified unsafe condition 

and that delaying this action until after 

the release of a revised service bulletin 

is not warranted. However, under the 

provisions of paragraph (l) of this AD, 

we will consider requests for an 

alternate inspection procedure if 

sufficient data are submitted to 

substantiate that the alternate inspection 

procedure would satisfactorily address 

the identified unsafe condition. We 

have not changed the AD in this regard. 

Request To Allow Simultaneous 

Inspection Steps 

AAL requested that we include the 

text of General Note 1 that appeared in 

Boeing Special Attention Service 

Bulletin 757–57–0068, dated September 

15, 2009, which was referenced in the 

original NPRM (75 FR 31327, June 3, 

2010) as the appropriate source of 


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11570 Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 33 / Tuesday, February 19, 2013 / Rules and Regulations 

service information for the proposed 

actions. AAL stated that this note 

allowed operators to accomplish the 

inspections on both wings 

simultaneously, or on multiple slat can 

locations on the same wing 

simultaneously, instead of performing 

the inspections on each slat can 

sequentially. 

We partially agree. We agree with 

revising the AD to allow for inspections 

of multiple slat can locations, on both 

wings, to be performed simultaneously, 

because there is no effect on the 

accomplishment of the service 

information. We have added new 

paragraph (h)(3) to this AD to include 

this provision. However, we disagree 

with adding the full text of General Note 

1 to the AD, because the note could be 

interpreted as allowing the inspection 

steps at a specific slat can to be 

performed out of sequence, which could 

detrimentally affect the results of the 

inspection and/or corrective actions. 

Request To Extend Compliance Time 

AAL requested that we extend the 

compliance time from 24 months to 72 

months after issuance of the AD to 

accomplish the required actions. AAL 

stated that ‘‘extending the inspection 

threshold to 72 months enables 

operators who have extended their 

maintenance program in accordance 

with Boeing Maintenance Planning Data 

to accomplish this modification at the 

first heavy maintenance visit after the 

effective date of the AD, thus precluding 

the addition of unnecessary out-ofservice days.’’ 

We do not agree to extend the 

compliance time to accomplish the 

required actions. In developing an 

appropriate compliance time for this 

AD, we considered not only the safety 

implications, but the manufacturer’s 

recommendations and the practical 

aspect of accomplishing the actions 

within an interval of time that 

corresponds to typical scheduled 

maintenance for affected operators. 

Also, the Boeing service information 

cited in the original NPRM (75 FR 

31327, June 3, 2010) has been available 

to operators since September 2009; 

therefore, U.S. operators have had 

ample time to consider initiating those 

actions, which this AD ultimately 

requires. Under the provisions of 

paragraph (l) of this AD, however, we 

might consider requests for adjustments 

to the compliance time if data are 

submitted to substantiate that such an 

adjustment would provide an acceptable 

level of safety. We have not changed the 

AD in this regard. 

Request To Change Reporting Method 

UPS requested that we revise 

paragraph (i) of the SNPRM (77 FR 

32433, June 1, 2012) to allow reporting 

of results of inspections performed prior 

to the effective date of the AD to be in 

a different format than that specified in 

Appendix A of Boeing Special Attention 

Service Bulletin 757–57–0068, Revision 

1, dated July 19, 2011. UPS stated that 

the reporting format provided in 

Appendix A of Boeing Special Attention 

Service Bulletin 757–57–0068, Revision 

1, dated July 19, 2011, is detailed, and 

that some of the details of inspections 

performed prior to the issuance of the 

SNPRM were not recorded in such 

detail. UPS noted that such detailed 

reporting was not part of the original 

NPRM (75 FR 31327, June 3, 2010). 

We do not agree to change the 

reporting requirement in this AD. The 

AD requires the use of Appendix A of 

Boeing Special Attention Service 

Bulletin 757–57–0068, Revision 1, dated 

July 19, 2011, as a means of gathering 

the details of the inspection findings. 

These additional details, which are not 

included in Appendix A of Boeing 

Special Attention Service Bulletin 757– 

57–0068, dated September 15, 2009, are 

necessary in order to evaluate whether 

further rulemaking to address this safety 

issue is warranted. However, under the 

provisions of paragraph (l) of this final 

rule, we might consider requests for 

approval of alternative reporting 

methods if sufficient data are submitted 

to substantiate that such an alternative 

method would provide an acceptable 

level of information gathering. We have 

not changed the final rule in this regard. 

Conclusion 

We reviewed the relevant data, 

considered the comments received, and 

determined that air safety and the 

public interest require adopting the AD 

with the changes described previously 

and minor editorial changes. We have 

determined that these minor changes: 

• Are consistent with the intent that 

was proposed in the SNPRM (77 FR 

32433, June 1, 2012) for correcting the 

unsafe condition; and 

• Do not add any additional burden 

upon the public than was already 

proposed in the SNPRM (77 FR 32433, 

June 1, 2012). 

We also determined that these 

changes will not increase the economic 

burden on any operator or increase the 

scope of the AD. 

Costs of Compliance 

We estimate that this AD affects 645 

airplanes of U.S. registry. 

We estimate the following costs to 

comply with this AD: 

ESTIMATED COSTS

Action Labor cost Parts cost Cost per 

product 

Cost on U.S. 

operators 

Inspection ...................... 80 work-hours × $85 per hour = $6,800 .................................................. $0 $6,800 $4,386,000 

We have received no definitive data 

that would enable us to provide cost 

estimates for the on-condition actions 

specified in this AD. 

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 have determined that this AD will 

not have federalism implications under 

Executive Order 13132. This AD will 

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. 


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Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 33 / Tuesday, February 19, 2013 / Rules and Regulations 11571 

For the reasons discussed above, I 

certify that this AD: 

(1) Is not a ‘‘significant regulatory 

action’’ under Executive Order 12866, 

(2) Is not a ‘‘significant rule’’ under 

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. 

List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 39 

Air transportation, Aircraft, Aviation 

safety, Incorporation by reference, 

Safety. 

Adoption of the Amendment 

Accordingly, under the authority 

delegated to me by the Administrator, 

the FAA amends 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 airworthiness 

directive (AD): 

2013–03–20 The Boeing Company: 

Amendment 39–17354; Docket No. 

FAA–2010–0547; Directorate Identifier 

2009–NM–234–AD. 

(a) Effective Date 

This airworthiness directive (AD) is 

effective March 26, 2013. 

(b) Affected ADs 

None. 

(c) Applicability 

This AD applies to all The Boeing 

Company Model 757–200, –200PF, –200CB, 

and –300 series airplanes, certificated in any 

category. 

(d) Subject 

Joint Aircraft System Component (JASC)/ 

Air Transport Association (ATA) of America 

Code 57, Wings. 

(e) Unsafe Condition 

This AD was prompted by reports of fuel 

leaking from the front spar of the wing 

through the slat track housing. We are issuing 

this AD to detect and correct incorrectly 

installed main track downstop assemblies, 

which, when the slat is retracted, could cause 

a puncture in the slat track housing and lead 

to a fuel leak and potential fire. 

(f) Compliance 

Comply with this AD within the 

compliance times specified, unless already 

done. 

(g) Inspection and Torque Application 

Except as required by paragraph (h)(1) of 

this AD, at the applicable time specified in 

paragraph 1.E., ‘‘Compliance,’’ of Boeing 

Special Attention Service Bulletin 757–57– 

0068, Revision 1, dated July 19, 2011: Do the 

actions specified in paragraphs (g)(1) and 

(g)(2) of this AD. 

(1) Perform a detailed inspection of the 

inboard and outboard main track downstop 

assemblies of slat numbers 1 through 10, 

excluding the outboard main track downstop 

assemblies of slat numbers 1 and 10, for 

correct assembly order and missing or 

damaged parts; perform a detailed inspection 

of all slat track housings for foreign object 

debris, visible damage, and missing parts; 

and do all applicable corrective actions; in 

accordance with the Accomplishment 

Instructions of Boeing Special Attention 

Service Bulletin 757–57–0068, Revision 1, 

dated July 19, 2011, except as required by 

paragraphs (h)(1), (h)(2), and (h)(3) of this 

AD. Do all applicable corrective actions 

before further flight. 

(2) Apply torque to the main track down 

stop assembly nuts to make sure they have 

been correctly installed, in accordance with 

the Accomplishment Instructions of Boeing 

Special Attention Service Bulletin 757–57– 

0068, Revision 1, dated July 19, 2011. 

(h) Exceptions to the Service Information 

(1) Where Boeing Special Attention Service 

Bulletin 757–57–0068, Revision 1, dated July 

19, 2011, specifies a compliance time ‘‘after 

the date on this service bulletin,’’ this AD 

requires compliance at the specified time 

after the effective date of this AD. 

(2) Where Boeing Special Attention Service 

Bulletin 757–57–0068, Revision 1, dated July 

19, 2011, specifies to contact Boeing for 

appropriate action: Before further flight, 

repair the damage using a method approved 

in accordance with the procedures specified 

in paragraph (l)(1) of this AD. 

(3) Although Boeing Special Attention 

Service Bulletin 757–57–0068, Revision 1, 

dated July 19, 2011, specifies the slat can 

inspections are to occur on the slat cans 

sequentially, this AD allows for the 

inspections of the slat cans at locations 1 

through 10 to be accomplished in any order, 

including multiple slat can locations 

simultaneously, provided that all the 

instructions of each applicable figure of 

Boeing Special Attention Service Bulletin 

757–57–0068, Revision 1, dated July 19, 

2011, are completed in sequence on each slat 

can. 

(i) Reporting Requirement 

If any of the conditions specified in 

paragraph B.3., ‘‘Part 3—Appendix A: 

Inspection Results Report,’’ of the 

Accomplishment Instructions of Boeing 

Special Attention Service Bulletin 757–57– 

0068, Revision 1, dated July 19, 2011, are 

found during the inspection required by 

paragraph (g) of this AD, submit a report of 

the inspection findings at the applicable time 

specified in paragraph (i)(1) or (i)(2) of this 

AD, as specified in Appendix A of Boeing 

Special Attention Service Bulletin 757–57– 

0068, Revision 1, dated July 19, 2011, to 

Boeing through the Boeing Communication 

System (BCS). The report must include a 

description of any discrepancies found, the 

airplane serial number, and the number of 

landings and flight hours on the airplane. 

(1) If the inspection was done on or after 

the effective date of this AD: Submit the 

report within 30 days after the inspection. 

(2) If the inspection was done before the 

effective date of this AD: Submit the report 

within 30 days after the effective date of this 

AD. 

(j) Credit for Previous Actions 

This paragraph provides credit for actions 

required by paragraph (g) of this AD, if those 

actions were performed before the effective 

date of this AD using Boeing Special 

Attention Bulletin 757–57–0068, dated 

September 15, 2009, which is not 

incorporated by reference in this AD, 

provided the inspection results are reported 

as specified in paragraph (i)(2) of this AD. 

(k) Paperwork Reduction Act Burden 

Statement 

A federal agency may not conduct or 

sponsor, and a person is not required to 

respond to, nor shall a person be subject to 

a penalty for failure to comply with a 

collection of information subject to the 

requirements of the Paperwork Reduction 

Act unless that collection of information 

displays a current valid OMB Control 

Number. The OMB Control Number for this 

information collection is 2120–0056. Public 

reporting for this collection of information is 

estimated to be approximately 5 minutes per 

response, including the time for reviewing 

instructions, completing and reviewing the 

collection of information. All responses to 

this collection of information are mandatory. 

Comments concerning the accuracy of this 

burden and suggestions for reducing the 

burden should be directed to the FAA at: 800 

Independence Ave. SW., Washington, DC 

20591, Attn: Information Collection 

Clearance Officer, AES–200. 

(l) 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 


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11572 Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 33 / Tuesday, February 19, 2013 / Rules and Regulations 

the certification basis of the airplane and the 

approval must specifically refer to this AD. 

(m) Related Information 

(1) For more information about this AD, 

contact Nancy Marsh, Aerospace Engineer, 

Airframe Branch, ANM–120S, Seattle 

Aircraft Certification Office (ACO), FAA, 

1601 Lind Avenue SW., Renton, Washington 

98057–3356; phone: 425–917–6440; fax: 425– 

917–6590; email: Nancy.Marsh@faa.gov. 

(2) For Boeing service information 

identified in this AD, contact Boeing 

Commercial Airplanes, Attention: Data & 

Services Management, P. O. Box 3707, MC 

2H–65, Seattle, Washington 98124–2207; 

phone: 206–544–5000, extension 1; fax: 206– 

766–5680; Internet: https:// 

www.myboeingfleet.com. 

(n) Material Incorporated by Reference 

(1) The Director of the Federal Register 

approved the incorporation by reference 

(IBR) of the service information listed in this 

paragraph under 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR 

part 51. 

(2) You must use this service information 

as applicable to do the actions required by 

this AD, unless the AD specifies otherwise. 

(i) Boeing Special Attention Service 

Bulletin 757–57–0068, Revision 1, dated July 

19, 2011. 

(ii) Reserved. 

(3) For service information identified in 

this AD, contact Boeing Commercial 

Airplanes, Attention: Data & Services 

Management, P. O. Box 3707, MC 2H–65, 

Seattle, Washington 98124–2207; phone: 

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

5680; Internet: https:// 

www.myboeingfleet.com. 

(4) You may review copies of the 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. 

(5) You may view this service information 

that is incorporated by reference at the 

National Archives and Records 

Administration (NARA). For information on 

the availability of this material at NARA, call 

202–741–6030, or go to: http:// 

www.archives.gov/federal-register/cfr/ibrlocations.html. 

Issued in Renton, Washington, on February 

6, 2013. 

Ali Bahrami, 

Manager, Transport Airplane Directorate, 

Aircraft Certification Service. 

[FR Doc. 2013–03268 Filed 2–15–13; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 39 

[Docket No. FAA–2012–0732; Directorate 

Identifier 2012–CE–022–AD; Amendment 

39–17311; AD 2012–26–16] 

RIN 2120–AA64 

Airworthiness Directives; Pilatus 

Aircraft Ltd. Airplanes 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), Department of 

Transportation (DOT). 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: We are superseding an 

existing airworthiness directive (AD) for 

all Pilatus Aircraft Ltd. Models PC–12, 

PC–12/45, PC–12/47, and PC–12/47E 

airplanes. This AD results from 

mandatory continuing airworthiness 

information (MCAI) issued by an 

aviation authority of another country to 

identify and correct an unsafe condition 

on an aviation product. The MCAI 

describes the unsafe condition as a need 

to incorporate new revisions into the 

Limitations section, Chapter 4, of the 

FAA-approved maintenance program 

(e.g., maintenance manual). We are 

issuing this AD to require actions to 

address the unsafe condition on these 

products. 

DATES: This AD is effective March 26, 

2013. 

The Director of the Federal Register 

approved the incorporation by reference 

of certain publications listed in the AD 

as of March 26, 2013. 

The Director of the Federal Register 

approved the incorporation by reference 

of a certain other publication listed in 

this AD as of August 19, 2009 (74 FR 

34213, July 15, 2009). 

ADDRESSES: You may examine the AD 

docket on the Internet at http:// 

www.regulations.gov or in person at 

Document Management Facility, U.S. 

Department of Transportation, Docket 

Operations, M–30, West Building 

Ground Floor, Room W12–140, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, 

DC 20590. 

For service information identified in 

this AD, contact Pilatus Aircraft Ltd., 

Customer Service Manager, CH–6371 

STANS, Switzerland; telephone: +41 (0) 

41 619 62 08; fax: +41 (0) 41 619 73 11; 

Internet: http://www.pilatusaircraft.com or email: 

SupportPC12@pilatus-aircraft.com. You 

may review copies of the referenced 

service information at the FAA, Small 

Airplane Directorate, 901 Locust, 

Kansas City, Missouri 64106. For 

information on the availability of this 

material at the FAA, call (816) 329– 

4148. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Doug Rudolph, Aerospace Engineer, 

FAA, Small Airplane Directorate, 901 

Locust, Room 301, Kansas City, 

Missouri 64106; telephone: (816) 329– 

4059; fax: (816) 329–4090; email: 

doug.rudolph@faa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Discussion 

We issued a supplemental notice of 

proposed rulemaking (SNPRM) to 

amend 14 CFR part 39 to include an AD 

that would apply to the specified 

products. That SNPRM was published 

in the Federal Register on October 22, 

2012 (77 FR 64442), which proposed to 

supersede AD 2009–14–13, Amendment 

39–15963 (74 FR 34213, July 15, 2009). 

Since we issued AD 2009–14–13, 

Amendment 39–15963 (74 FR 34213, 

July 15, 2009), Pilatus Aircraft Ltd. has 

issued revisions to the Limitations 

section of the airplane maintenance 

manual to include an inspection of the 

wing main spar fastener holes at rib 6 

for cracks. 

The European Aviation Safety Agency 

(EASA), which is the Technical Agent 

for the Member States of the European 

Community, has issued AD No. 2012– 

0099, dated June 8, 2012 (referred to 

after this as ‘‘the MCAI’’), to correct an 

unsafe condition for the specified 

products. The MCAI states: 

The mandatory instructions and 

airworthiness limitations applicable to the 

Structure and Components of the PC–12 are 

specified in the Aircraft Maintenance Manual 

(AMM) under Chapter 4. Prompted by a crack 

found on one wing of the aeroplane fleet 

leader, a more restrictive airworthiness 

limitation was introduced, in that manual, 

for the inspection of the main spar rib 6 strap 

fastener. 

These documents include the maintenance 

instructions and/or airworthiness limitations 

developed by Pilatus Aircraft Ltd. and 

approved by EASA. Failure to comply with 

these instructions and limitations could 

potentially lead to unsafe condition. 

For the reasons described above, this AD 

requires the implementation of more 

restrictive maintenance instructions and/or 

airworthiness limitations. 

You may obtain further information 

by examining the MCAI in the AD 

docket. 

Comments 

We gave the public the opportunity to 

participate in developing this AD. We 

received no comments on the SNPRM 

(77 FR 64442, October 22, 2012) or on 

the determination of the cost to the 

public. 


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