37770 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 122 / Monday, June 25, 2012 / Rules and Regulations 

14 CFR part 119, subpart K, we suggest that 

you notify your principal inspector, or 

lacking a principal inspector, the manager of 

the local flight standards district office or 

certificate holding district office before 

operating any aircraft complying with this 

AD through an AMOC. 

(g) Additional Information 

The FAA-accepted AAI Instructions for 

Continued Airworthiness Report Number 

AA–01136, and the Bell Helicopter Textron 

Alert Service Bulletin No. 412–08–129, dated 

May 12, 2008, which are not incorporated by 

reference, contain additional information 

about inspecting the aft crosstube for a crack. 

For the AAI service information, contact 

Aeronautical Accessories, Inc., P.O. Box 

3689, Bristol, Tennessee 37625–3689, 

telephone (423) 538–5151 or 1–800–251– 

7094, fax (423) 538–8469, or at http://

www.aero-access.com. For the Bell 

Helicopter Textron service information, 

contact Bell Helicopter Textron, Inc., P.O. 

Box 482, Fort Worth, TX 76101, telephone 

(817) 280–3391, fax (817) 280–6466, or at 

http://www.bellcustomer.com/files. 

(h) Subject 

Joint Aircraft Service Component (JASC) 

Code: 32: Landing Gear. 

(i) Material Incorporated by Reference 

(1) The Director of the Federal Register 

approved the incorporation by reference 

(IBR) of the following service information 

under 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51. 

(2) You must use the following service 

information to do the actions required by this 

AD, unless the AD specifies otherwise. 

(3) The following service information was 

approved for IBR on July 10, 2012. 

(i) Aeronautical Accessories, Inc., Alert 

Service Bulletin No. AA–07109, dated April 

3, 2008. 

(4) For this service information, contact 

Aeronautical Accessories, Inc., P.O. Box 

3689, Bristol, Tennessee 37625–3689, 

telephone (423) 538–5151 or 1–800–251– 

7094, fax (423) 538–8469, or at http://www.

aero-access.com. 

(5) You may review a copy of this 

referenced service information at the FAA, 

Office of the Regional Counsel, Southwest 

Region, 2601 Meacham Blvd., Room 663, Fort 

Worth, Texas 76137 or 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/code_of_federal_regulations/

ibr_locations.html. 

Issued in Fort Worth, Texas, on May 25, 

2012. 

Lance T. Gant, 

Acting Manager, Rotorcraft Directorate, 

Aircraft Certification Service. 

[FR Doc. 2012–15286 Filed 6–22–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 39 

[Docket No. FAA–2012–0035; Directorate 

Identifier 2011–NM–178–AD; Amendment 

39–17094; AD 2012–12–14] 

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 certain 

The Boeing Company Model 767–200 

and –300 series airplanes. This AD was 

prompted by reports of fatigue cracking 

on the lower main sill inner chord of the 

hatch opening of the overwing 

emergency exit. This AD requires 

repetitive inspections for cracking, 

corrosion damage, and any other 

irregularity of the lower main sill inner 

chord and surrounding structure, and 

repair if necessary. We are issuing this 

AD to detect and correct fatigue 

cracking on the lower main sill inner 

chord of the hatch opening of the 

overwing emergency exit, which could 

result in reduced structural integrity of 

the hatch opening of the overwing 

emergency exit and consequent rapid 

decompression of the airplane. 

DATES: This AD is effective July 30, 

2012. 

The Director of the Federal Register 

approved the incorporation by reference 

of a certain publication listed in the AD 

as of July 30, 2012. 

ADDRESSES: 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; telephone 206–544–5000, 

extension 1; fax 206–766–5680; email 

me.boecom@boeing.com; 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, 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 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: 

Berhane Alazar, Aerospace Engineer, 

Airframe Branch, ANM–120S, FAA, 

Seattle Aircraft Certification Office, 

1601 Lind Avenue SW., Renton, 

Washington 98057–3356; phone: 425– 

917–6577; fax: 425–917–6590; email: 

berhane.alazar@faa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Discussion 

We issued a notice of proposed 

rulemaking (NPRM) to amend 14 CFR 

part 39 to include an AD that would 

apply to the specified products. That 

NPRM published in the Federal 

Register on January 23, 2012 (77 FR 

3187). That NPRM proposed to require 

repetitive inspections for cracking, 

corrosion damage, and any other 

irregularity of the lower main sill inner 

chord and surrounding structure, and 

repair if necessary. 

Comments 

We gave the public the opportunity to 

participate in developing this AD. The 

following presents the comments 

received on the proposal (77 FR 3187, 

January 23, 2012) and the FAA’s 

response to each comment. 

Request To Clarify Terminating Action 

and Post-Repair Inspection Program 

Boeing requested that we revise the 

wording in paragraph (g) of the NPRM 

(77 FR 3187, January 23, 2012) to clarify 

that the AD terminates only the 

repetitive inspections required by the 

NPRM. Boeing also stated that the 

inspection area designated in the NPRM 

may be subject to other repetitive 

inspections following repairs done per 

another AD. 

All Nippon Airways (ANA) requested 

that we confirm that the post-repair 

inspection program is not mandatory. 

Delta Air Lines (Delta) requested that 

the NPRM (77 FR 3187, January 23, 

2012) be revised to include the use of 

the ‘‘proactive’’ doubler installations as 

a terminating action. Delta stated that 

paragraph (g) of the NPRM authorizes 

only the on-condition repair as a 

terminating action. Delta requested that 

we include a separate paragraph to 

define the terminating action 

provisions. 


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Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 122 / Monday, June 25, 2012 / Rules and Regulations 37771 

We agree that clarification is needed. 

Other ADs require inspections of certain 

structure covered by this AD. The 

certification basis of the airplane 

includes damage tolerance inspections 

for these repairs, and they are already 

available in the service repair manual 

(SRM). The required SRM repairs 

include post-repair inspections. These 

inspections are required by the 

regulations identified in the certification 

basis of the airplane and other 

operational rules, and not by this AD. 

We have clarified the terminating action 

for the inspections in this AD by 

revising paragraph (g) of this AD and 

adding paragraph (h) to this AD. To 

further clarify, the ‘‘proactive’’ doubler 

installation and the on-condition repair 

both terminate the inspections. 

Request To Clarify the Applicability 

Regarding the Installation of Winglets 

American Airlines (American) 

requested that we revise the NPRM (77 

FR 3187, January 23, 2012) to clearly 

state how the compliance times for 

airplanes covered by the applicability of 

the NPRM are affected by the 

installation of winglets. American stated 

that many operators have affected 

airplanes by this AD which have been 

modified to have winglets. 

Aviation Partners Boeing (APB) stated 

it has reviewed Boeing Alert Service 

Bulletin 767–53A0228, dated July 28, 

2011, and the NPRM (77 FR 3187, 

January 23, 2012) as it relates to the APB 

winglet supplemental type certificate 

(STC) ST01920SE and determined that 

the installation of the winglet STC does 

not affect this proposed rule. APB noted 

that data to support this comment is 

available from APB upon request from 

the FAA. We infer that APB is 

requesting that we clarify the effect of 

the STC on the proposed rule. 

We agree to clarify. The installation of 

winglets as specified in STC ST01920SE 

does not affect accomplishment of the 

requirements of this AD, and an AMOC 

is not necessary for a ‘‘change in 

product’’ AMOC approval request. We 

have therefore added this provision in 

new Note 1 to paragraph (c) of this AD. 

Request To Allow Re-Sequencing of 

Steps 

American requested that we revise the 

‘‘Differences Between Proposed AD and 

the Service Information’’ paragraph of 

the preamble, and paragraph (h)(2) of 

the NPRM (77 FR 3187, January 23, 

2012) to allow re-sequencing of ‘‘openup’’ and ‘‘close-up’’ steps only, while 

maintaining the sequence for inspection 

and repair. American stated that 

allowing re-sequencing of those steps 

would reduce the number of AMOC 

requests for tasks that do not address the 

unsafe condition. 

We partially agree with the request. 

Because the ‘‘Differences Between 

Proposed AD and the Service 

Information’’ paragraph is not restated 

in the final rule, we have not made any 

change to the AD in that regard. 

However, we have revised paragraph 

(i)(2) of this AD (referred to as paragraph 

(h)(2) in the NPRM (77 FR 3187, January 

23, 2012)) to state that ‘‘open-up’’ and 

‘‘close-up’’ steps may be done in any 

practical order. 

Change to Paragraph (j)(3) of the NPRM 

(77 FR 3187, January 23, 2012) 

We incorrectly included a reference to 

14 CFR 25.571, Amendment 45 in 

paragraph (i)(3) of the NPRM (77 FR 

3187, January 23, 2012). That reference 

has been removed from this AD. 

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 NPRM (77 FR 3187, 

January 23, 2012) for correcting the 

unsafe condition; and 

• Do not add any additional burden 

upon the public than was already 

proposed in the NPRM (77 FR 3187, 

January 23, 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 377 

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 ......... 28 work-hours × $85 per hour = $2,380 

per inspection cycle.

$0 $2,380 per inspection cycle ...... $897,260 per inspection cycle. 

We have received no definitive data 

that would enable us to provide a cost 

estimate 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 

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. 

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. 


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37772 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 122 / Monday, June 25, 2012 / Rules and Regulations 

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): 

2012–12–14 The Boeing Company: 

Amendment 39–17094; Docket No. 

FAA–2012–0035; Directorate Identifier 

2011–NM–178–AD. 

(a) Effective Date 

This AD is effective July 30, 2012. 

(b) Affected ADs 

None. 

(c) Applicability 

This AD applies to The Boeing Company 

Model 767–200 and –300 series airplanes, 

certificated in any category, as identified in 

Boeing Alert Service Bulletin 767–53A0228, 

dated July 28, 2011. 

Note 1 to paragraph (c) of this AD: 

Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) 

ST01920SE (http://rgl.faa.gov/ 

Regulatory_and_Guidance_Library/rgstc.nsf/ 

0/082838ee177dbf62862576a4005cdfc0/ 

$FILE/ST01920SE.pdf) does not affect the 

ability to accomplish the actions required by 

this AD. Therefore, for airplanes on which 

STC ST01920SE is installed, a ‘‘change in 

product’’ alternative method of compliance 

(AMOC) approval request is not necessary to 

comply with the requirements of 14 CFR 

39.17. 

(d) Subject 

Joint Aircraft System Component (JASC)/ 

Air Transport Association (ATA) of America 

Code 53, Fuselage. 

(e) Unsafe Condition 

This AD was prompted by reports of 

fatigue cracking on the lower main sill inner 

chord of the hatch opening of the overwing 

emergency exit. We are issuing this AD to 

detect and correct fatigue cracking on the 

lower main sill inner chord of the hatch 

opening of the overwing emergency exit, 

which could result in reduced structural 

integrity of the hatch opening of the 

overwing emergency exit and consequent 

rapid decompression of the airplane. 

(f) Compliance 

Comply with this AD within the 

compliance times specified, unless already 

done. 

(g) Repetitive Inspections and Repair 

Within the applicable compliance time 

specified in paragraph 1.E., ‘‘Compliance,’’ of 

Boeing Alert Service Bulletin 767–53A0228, 

dated July 28, 2011, except as provided by 

paragraph (i)(3) of this AD: Do a high 

frequency eddy current (HFEC) inspection for 

cracking of the lower main sill inner chord 

around body station (STA) 883.5; a detailed 

inspection for cracking, corrosion damage, 

and any other irregularity, of the lower main 

sill inner chord and surrounding structure 

around STA 883.5; and a detailed inspection 

for cracking, corrosion damage, or other 

irregularity, of the lower main sill inner 

chord and surrounding structure around STA 

903.5; as applicable; and do all applicable 

repairs; in accordance with the 

Accomplishment Instructions of Boeing Alert 

Service Bulletin 767–53A0228, dated July 28, 

2011, except as required by paragraphs (i)(1) 

and (i)(2) of this AD. Do all applicable repairs 

before further flight. Repeat the applicable 

inspections thereafter within the applicable 

times and intervals specified in paragraph 

1.E., ‘‘Compliance,’’ of Boeing Alert Service 

Bulletin 767–53A0228, dated July 28, 2011. 

Doing a structural repair specified in 

paragraph (h) of this AD, terminates the 

inspections for that location only. 

(h) Optional Terminating Action 

Doing a structural repair (doubler 

installation) in accordance with the 

Accomplishment Instructions of Boeing Alert 

Service Bulletin 767–53A0228, dated July 28, 

2011, terminates the inspections required by 

paragraph (g) of this AD for that location 

only. 

(i) Exceptions 

(1) If any cracking, corrosion damage, or 

other irregularity is found during any 

inspection required by this AD, and Boeing 

Alert Service Bulletin 767–53A0228, dated 

July 28, 2011, specifies to contact Boeing for 

appropriate action: Before further flight, 

repair the cracking, corrosion damage, or 

other irregularity, using a method approved 

in accordance with the procedures specified 

in paragraph (j) of this AD. 

(2) Where Boeing Alert Service Bulletin 

767–53A0228, dated July 28, 2011, specifies 

that the sequence of steps to do the actions 

can be changed, this AD does not allow the 

sequence of steps to be changed for the 

inspection and repair; however, the open-up 

and close-up steps may be done in any 

practical order. 

(3) Where Boeing Alert Service Bulletin 

767–53A0228, dated July 28, 2011, specifies 

a compliance time ‘‘after the original issue 

date of this service bulletin,’’ this AD 

requires compliance within the specified 

compliance time ‘‘after the effective date of 

this AD.’’ 

(j) 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. 

(k) Related Information 

For more information about this AD, 

contact Berhane Alazar, Aerospace Engineer, 

Airframe Branch, ANM–120S, FAA, Seattle 

Aircraft Certification Office, 1601 Lind 

Avenue SW., Renton, Washington 98057– 

3356; phone: 425–917–6577; fax: 425–917– 

6590; email: berhane.alazar@faa.gov. 

(l) Material Incorporated by Reference 

(1)You must use the following service 

information to do the actions required by this 

AD, unless the AD specifies otherwise. The 

Director of the Federal Register approved the 

incorporation by reference (IBR) of the 

following service information under 5 U.S.C. 

552(a) and 1 CFR part 51: 

(i) Boeing Alert Service Bulletin 767– 

53A0228, dated July 28, 2011. 

(2) 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; telephone 

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

5680; email me.boecom@boeing.com; Internet 

https://www.myboeingfleet.com. 

(3) You may review copies of the 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. 

(4) You may also review copies of the 

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/ibr-locations.html. 

Issued in Renton, Washington, on June 7, 

2012. 

Michael Kaszycki, 

Acting Manager, Transport Airplane 

Directorate, Aircraft Certification Service. 

[FR Doc. 2012–14829 Filed 6–22–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 


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