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[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 161 (Tuesday, August 20, 2013)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 51115-51117]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-20312]

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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 39

[Docket No. FAA-2013-0737; Directorate Identifier 2012-SW-111-AD]
RIN 2120-AA64

Airworthiness Directives; Eurocopter France Helicopters

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).

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SUMMARY: We propose to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) for 
certain Eurocopter France (Eurocopter) Model AS332C, AS332L, AS332L1, 
AS332L2, and SA330J helicopters. This proposed AD would require 
inspecting the crimping of the ball joint of the upper- and lower- end-
fittings of the main servo-control and, depending on findings, 
replacing the main servo-control or repairing the ball joint. This 
proposed AD is prompted by incidents of missing crimping on the ball 
joints of servo-control end-fittings. The proposed actions are intended 
to prevent failure of a main servo-control upper end fitting, and 
subsequent failure of the flight controls and loss of control of the 
helicopter.

DATES: We must receive comments on this proposed AD by October 21, 
2013.

ADDRESSES: You may send comments by any of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Docket: Go to http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for sending your 
comments electronically.
     Fax: 202-493-2251.

[[Page 51116]]

     Mail: Send comments to the U.S. Department of 
Transportation, Docket Operations, M-30, West Building Ground Floor, 
Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590-0001.
     Hand Delivery: Deliver to the ``Mail'' address between 9 
a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.

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 foreign 
authority's AD, the economic 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 service information identified in this proposed AD, contact 
American Eurocopter Corporation, 2701 N. Forum Drive, Grand Prairie, TX 
75052; telephone (972) 641-0000 or (800) 232-0323; fax (972) 641-3775; 
or at http://www.eurocopter.com/techpub. You may review the referenced 
service information at the FAA, Office of the Regional Counsel, 
Southwest Region, 2601 Meacham Blvd., Room 663, Fort Worth, Texas 
76137.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Matt Wilbanks, Aviation Safety 
Engineer, Rotorcraft Certification Office, Rotorcraft Directorate, FAA, 
2601 Meacham Blvd., Fort Worth, Texas 76137; telephone (817) 222-5110; 
email matt.wilbanks@faa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Comments Invited

    We invite you to participate in this rulemaking by submitting 
written comments, data, or views. We also invite comments relating to 
the economic, environmental, energy, or federalism impacts that might 
result from adopting the proposals in this document. The most helpful 
comments reference a specific portion of the proposal, explain the 
reason for any recommended change, and include supporting data. To 
ensure the docket does not contain duplicate comments, commenters 
should send only one copy of written comments, or if comments are filed 
electronically, commenters should submit only one time.
    We will file in the docket all comments that we receive, as well as 
a report summarizing each substantive public contact with FAA personnel 
concerning this proposed rulemaking. Before acting on this proposal, we 
will consider all comments we receive on or before the closing date for 
comments. We will consider comments filed after the comment period has 
closed if it is possible to do so without incurring expense or delay. 
We may change this proposal in light of the comments we receive.

Discussion

    The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), which is the Technical 
Agent for the Member States of the European Union, has issued EASA AD 
No. 2012-0248, dated November 20, 2012, to correct an unsafe condition 
for Eurocopter AS 332 C, AS 332 C1, AS 332 L, AS 332 L1, AS 332 L2, and 
SA 330 J helicopters with certain part-numbered main servo-controls 
installed. EASA advises that several occurrences were reported to 
Eurocopter of missing crimping on ball joints of servo-control end-
fittings. EASA states that while slipping of the ball joint of the 
lower end-fitting does not affect its service life, slipping of the 
ball joint of the upper end-fitting can lead to a significant reduction 
of the service life of this end-fitting. As a result, the EASA AD 
requires inspecting each ball joint for crimping and, depending on the 
findings, replacing the main servo-control.

FAA's Determination

    These helicopters have been approved by the aviation authority of 
France and are approved for operation in the United States. Pursuant to 
our bilateral agreement with France, EASA, its technical 
representative, has notified us of the unsafe condition described in 
its AD. We are proposing this AD because we evaluated all known 
relevant information and determined that an unsafe condition is likely 
to exist or develop on other products of the same type design.

Related Service Information

    Eurocopter issued one Emergency Alert Service Bulletin (EASB) with 
three different numbers, all Revision 1, and all dated December 5, 
2012. EASB No. 67.00.45 applies to civilian Model AS332C, AS332C1, 
AS332L, AS332L1, AS332L2, and military Model AS332B, AS332B1, AS332M, 
AS332M1, and AS332F1 helicopters. EASB No. 67.00.31 applies to military 
Model AS532AC, AS532AL, AS532SC, AS532UC, AS532UE, AS532UL, AS532A2, 
and AS532U2 helicopters. EASB No. 67.19 applies to civilian Model 
SA330J and military Model SA330Ba, SA330Ca, SA330Ea, SA330L, SA330Jm, 
SA330S1, and SA330Sm helicopters. The EASB specifies visually checking 
for crimping of the ball joints of the upper- and lower- servo control 
end-fittings and informing the Eurocopter Technical Support Department 
of any ball joint that is not crimped. For an upper end-fitting ball 
joint that is not crimped and slips one millimeter (mm) or greater, the 
EASB specifies returning the servo-control for replacement of the ball 
joint and the end-fitting. For an upper end-fitting ball joint that is 
not crimped and slips less than one mm, the EASB specifies either 
crimping the ball joint or returning the servo-control for ball joint 
crimping. For a lower end-fitting ball joint that is not crimped, the 
EASB states to crimp the ball joint. The EASB also states that if a 
ball joint is crimped, no action on that ball joint is required in 
regard to this unsafe condition.

Proposed AD Requirements

    This proposed AD would require visually inspecting the applicable 
ball joint of the upper and lower end-fittings of the main servo 
control for crimping. If the ball joint of the upper end-fitting is not 
crimped and the slipping of the ball joint is one mm or greater, then 
this proposed AD would require replacing the servo-control with an 
airworthy servo-control. If the ball joint of the upper end-fitting is 
not crimped and the slipping of the ball joint is less than one mm, 
then this proposed AD would require replacing the servo-control with an 
airworthy servo-control or crimping the ball joint. If the ball joint 
of the lower end-fitting is not crimped, this proposed AD would require 
crimping the ball joint.

Costs of Compliance

    We estimate that this proposed AD would affect 18 helicopters of 
U.S. Registry. We estimate that operators may incur the following costs 
in order to comply with this AD. We estimate it would take 1 work-hour 
to inspect the ball joint for crimping at an average labor cost of $85 
per work-hour. Based on these figures, it would cost about $85 per 
helicopter for the inspection, or $1,530 for U.S. operators. We 
estimate it would take 4 work-hours to replace a servo-control and 
parts would cost approximately $60,358 for a total estimated cost of 
$60,698 for replacement.
    According to Eurocopter's service information some of the costs of 
this proposed AD may be covered under warranty, thereby reducing the 
cost impact on affected individuals. We do not control warranty 
coverage by

[[Page 51117]]

Eurocopter or UTC Actuation Systems/Goodrich Actuation Systems. 
Accordingly, we have included all costs in our cost estimate.

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 proposed 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, 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 to the extent that 
it justifies making a regulatory distinction; 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 an economic 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

0
1. The authority citation for part 39 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 49 U.S.C. 106(g), 40113, 44701.

Sec.  39.13  [Amended]

0
2. The FAA amends Sec.  39.13 by adding the following new airworthiness 
directive (AD):

Eurocopter France (Eurocopter) Helicopters: Docket No. FAA-2013-
0737; Directorate Identifier 2012-SW-111-AD.

(a) Applicability

    This AD applies to the following model helicopters, certificated 
in any category, with a part-numbered main servo-control listed 
below: overhauled or repaired by UTC Actuation Systems/Goodrich 
Actuation Systems between June 1, 2008, and September 15, 2012, 
inclusive; or with a serial number listed in Appendix 1 of 
Eurocopter Emergency Alert Service Bulletin Nos. 67.00.45 or 67.19, 
both Revision 1, and both dated December 5, 2012 (EASB):
    (1) Model AS332C, AS332L, AS332L1, and AS332L2 helicopters with 
main servo-control, part number (P/N) SC7202, SC7202-(all dash 
numbers), SC7203, SC7203-(all dash numbers), SC7221, or SC7221-(all 
dash numbers), installed; and
    (2) Model SA330J helicopters with main servo-control P/N SC7111, 
SC7111-(all dash numbers) SC7112, or SC7112-(all dash numbers), 
installed.

(b) Unsafe Condition

    This AD defines the unsafe condition as missing crimping on a 
ball joint of a main servo-control end-fitting. This condition could 
result in failure of a main servo-control upper end fitting, failure 
of the flight controls, and loss of control of the helicopter.

(c) Comments Due Date

    We must receive comments by October 21, 2013.

(d) Compliance

    You are responsible for performing each action required by this 
AD within the specified compliance time unless it has already been 
accomplished prior to that time.

(e) Required Actions

    (1) Within 85 hours time-in-service (TIS):
    (i) Using a light source, inspect the ball joint of the upper 
end-fitting of the main servo control for crimping in accordance 
with Detail A and Detail B, Figure 1, of the EASB applicable to your 
model helicopter.
    (A) If the upper ball joint is not crimped and the ball joint 
slips a distance of 1 millimeter (mm) or greater, replace the servo-
control with an airworthy servo-control.
    (B) If the upper ball joint is not crimped and the ball joint 
slips a distance of less than 1mm, either crimp the ball joint or 
replace the servo-control with an airworthy servo-control.
    (ii) Using a light source, inspect the ball joint of the lower 
end-fitting of the main servo-control for crimping in accordance 
with Detail A and Detail B, Figure 1, of the EASB applicable to your 
model helicopter. If the lower ball joint is not crimped, crimp the 
ball joint.
    (2) Prior to installing any servo-control that is affected by 
this AD, perform the required actions in accordance with paragraphs 
(e)(1) of this AD.

(f) Alternative Methods of Compliance (AMOCs)

    (1) The Manager, Safety Management Group, FAA, may approve AMOCs 
for this AD. Send your proposal to: Matt Wilbanks, Aviation Safety 
Engineer, Rotorcraft Certification Office, Rotorcraft Directorate, 
FAA, 2601 Meacham Blvd., Fort Worth, Texas 76137; telephone (817) 
222-5110; email matt.wilbanks@faa.gov.
    (2) For operations conducted under a 14 CFR part 119 operating 
certificate or under 14 CFR part 91, 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 subject of this AD is addressed in European Aviation Safety 
Agency (EASA) AD No. 2012-0248, dated November 20, 2012. You may 
view the EASA AD on the Internet at http://www.regulations.gov in 
Docket No. FAA-2013-0737.

(h) Subject

    Joint Aircraft Service Component (JASC) Code: 6730, Rotor Flight 
Control--Rotorcraft Servo System.

    Issued in Fort Worth, Texas, on August 12, 2013.
Kim Smith,
Directorate Manager, Rotorcraft Directorate, Aircraft Certification 
Service.
[FR Doc. 2013-20312 Filed 8-19-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-13-P
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