This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER

contains notices to the public of the proposed

issuance of rules and regulations. The

purpose of these notices is to give interested

persons an opportunity to participate in the

rule making prior to the adoption of the final

rules.

Proposed Rules Federal Register

29499

Vol. 61, No. 113

Tuesday, June 11, 1996

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 39

[Docket No. 95–CE–91–AD]

RIN 2120—AA64

Airworthiness Directives; AlliedSignal

Inc., VN–411B VHF Navigation

Receiver

AGENCY: Federal Aviation

Administration, DOT.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking

(NPRM).

SUMMARY: This document proposes to

adopt a new airworthiness directive

(AD) that would apply to certain

AlliedSignal Inc. VN–411B VHF

Navigation Receivers without

Modification 20 that are installed on but

not limited to Learjet Model 31A,

Fokker Model F27–50, and British

Aerospace Model ATP airplanes. The

proposed action would require

removing and replacing the navigation

receivers that do not have Modification

20 installed. A report of navigation

receiver interference during a landing

operation prompted the proposed

action. The actions specified by the

proposed AD are intended to prevent

VHF navigation receiver interference

from FM radio station broadcasts which

could cause distortion of the navigation

audio and deflection of the desired

flight path of the airplane during

landing operations, possibly resulting in

loss of the airplane.

DATES: Comments must be received on

or before August 14, 1996.

ADDRESSES: Submit comments in

triplicate to the Federal Aviation

Administration (FAA), Central Region,

Office of the Assistant Chief Counsel,

Attention: Rules Docket No. 95–CE–91–

AD, Room 1558, 601 E. 12th Street,

Kansas City, Missouri 64106. Comments

may be inspected at this location

between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday

through Friday, holidays excepted.

Service information that applies to the

proposed AD may be obtained from

AlliedSignal, General Aviation

Avionics, 400 North Rogers Road,

Olathe, Kansas 66062–1212. This

information also may be examined at

the Rules Docket at the address above.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Roger Souter, Aerospace Engineer, FAA,

Wichita Aircraft Certification Office,

1801 Airport Road, Room 100, MidContinent Airport, Wichita, Kansas

67209; telephone (316) 946–4134,

facsimile (316) 946–4407.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Comments Invited

Interested persons are invited to

participate in the making of the

proposed rule by submitting such

written data, views, or arguments as

they may desire. Communications

should identify the Rules Docket

number and be submitted in triplicate to

the address specified above. All

communications received on or before

the closing date for comments, specified

above, will be considered before taking

action on the proposed rule. The

proposals contained in this notice may

be changed in light of the comments

received.

Comments are specifically invited on

the overall regulatory, economic,

environmental, and energy aspects of

the proposed rule. All comments

submitted will be available, both before

and after the closing date for comments,

in the Rules Docket for examination by

interested persons. A report that

summarizes each FAA-public contact

concerned with the substance of this

proposal will be filed in the Rules

Docket.

Commenters wishing the FAA to

acknowledge receipt of their comments

submitted in response to this notice

must submit a self-addressed, stamped

postcard on which the following

statement is made: ‘‘Comments to

Docket No. 95–CE–91–AD.’’ The

postcard will be date stamped and

returned to the commenter.

Availability of NPRMs

Any person may obtain a copy of this

NPRM by submitting a request to the

FAA, Central Region, Office of the

Assistant Chief Counsel, Attention:

Rules Docket No. 95–CE–91–AD, Room

1558, 601 E. 12th Street, Kansas City,

Missouri 64106.

Discussion

The FAA has received a report of

navigation receiver interference aboard

an airplane equipped with an

AlliedSignal VN–411B VHF Navigation

Receiver from a nearby FM radio station

broadcast while operating on the

runway localizer course. The

interference was manifested by the

display of misleading localizer

information on the cockpit display

systems. Further investigation revealed

that the source of the problem was

interference between the localizer

receiver local oscillator, the glide slope

receiver voltage controlled oscillator

(VCO), and the FM broadcast signal.

These navigation receivers, although

conforming to the requirements for FM

interference immunity, are susceptible

to FM broadcast interference when

tuned to erroneous VHF localizer

frequencies, resulting in misleading

localizer signal outputs. Although this

occurrence implies that a 3.0 Mhz split

between the localizer frequency and the

FM station frequency could cause this

problem, the manufacturer states that

preliminary testing has shown that only

multiple combinations of these signal

sources can result in erroneous localizer

operation.

AlliedSignal, Inc. has issued Bendix/

King service bulletin (SB) VN 411B–20,

dated January 1996, which specifies

modifying the navigation receiver and

completing a test for FM frequency

immunity.

After examining the circumstances

and reviewing all available information

related to the incident described above,

the FAA has determined that AD action

should be taken to prevent VHF

navigation receiver interference from

FM radio station broadcasts which

could result in distortion of the

navigation audio and deflection of the

desired flight path of the airplane

during landing operations.

Since an unsafe condition has been

identified that is likely to exist or

develop in other AlliedSignal Inc. VN–

411B VHF navigation receivers of the

same type design, the proposed AD

would require removing any VHF

navigation receiver that does not have

Modification 20 installed and replacing

the receiver with one that has

Modification 20 installed by an

AlliedSignal Bendix/King owned

service center.
29500 Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 113 / Tuesday, June 11, 1996 / Proposed Rules

The FAA estimates that 19 receivers

in the U.S. registry would be affected by

the proposed AD, that it would take

approximately 2 workhours per receiver

to accomplish the proposed action, and

that the average labor rate is

approximately $60 an hour. The

manufacturer is not charging the owner/

operator for exchanging the navigation

receiver unit and is allowing 2

workhours of labor to be claimed by the

owners/operators to accomplish the

proposed action. Based on these figures,

there is no cost impact of the proposed

AD on U.S. operators. The FAA has no

way of determining if any of the affected

airplanes have the navigation receiver

with Modification 20 installed.

The compliance time of this AD is

presented in calendar time instead of

hours time-in-service (TIS). The FAA

has determined that a calendar time

compliance is the most desirable

method because of the wide range of

fleet usage. Therefore, to ensure that the

above-referenced condition is detected

and corrected on all airplanes within a

reasonable period of time without

inadvertently grounding any airplanes, a

compliance schedule based upon

calendar time instead of hours TIS is

required.

The regulations proposed herein

would not have substantial direct effects

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. Therefore,

in accordance with Executive Order

12612, it is determined that this

proposal would not have sufficient

federalism implications to warrant the

preparation of a Federalism Assessment.

For the reasons discussed above, I

certify that this action (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); and (3) if

promulgated, will not have a significant

economic impact, positive or negative,

on a substantial number of small entities

under the Regulatory Flexibility Act. A

copy of the draft regulatory evaluation

prepared for this action has been placed

in the Rules Docket. A copy of it may

be obtained by contacting the Rules

Docket at the location provided under

the caption ADDRESSES.

List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 39

Air transportation, Aircraft, Aviation

safety, Safety.

The Proposed Amendment

Accordingly, pursuant to the

authority delegated to me by the

Administrator, the Federal Aviation

Administration proposes to amend part

39 of the Federal Aviation Regulations

(14 CFR part 39) as follows:

PART 39—AIRWORTHINESS

DIRECTIVES

1. The authority citation for part 39

continues to read as follows:

Authority:‘ 49 USC 106(g), 40113, 44701.

§ 39.13 [Amended]

2. Section 39.13 is amended by

adding a new airworthiness directive

(AD) to read as follows:

AlliedSignal Inc.: Docket No. 95–CE–91–AD.

Applicability: VHF Navigation Receivers

with the following model, part numbers,

computer software, and modifications that do

not have Modification 20 installed on but not

limited to Learjet Model 31A, Fokker Model

F27–50, and British Aerospace Model ATP

airplanes, certificated in any category.

Model King part No.

Software

ID

Modification

VN–411B ........................................................................................................................................................ 066–1101–00 06 18 and 19.

VN–411B ........................................................................................................................................................ 066–1101–31 00 00 and 19.

VN–411B ........................................................................................................................................................ 066–1101–40 00 00 and 19.

VN–411B ........................................................................................................................................................ 066–1101–50 00 00 and 19.

Note 1: This AD applies to each airplane

identified in the preceding applicability

provision, regardless of whether it has been

modified, altered, or repaired in the area

subject to the requirements of this AD. For

airplanes that have been modified, altered, or

repaired so that the performance of the

requirements of this AD is affected, the

owner/operator must request approval for an

alternative method of compliance in

accordance with paragraph (d) of this AD.

The request should include an assessment of

the effect of the modification, alteration, or

repair on the unsafe condition addressed by

this AD; and, if the unsafe condition has not

been eliminated, the request should include

specific proposed actions to address it.

Compliance: Requried within the next 90

calendar days after the effective date of this

AD or upon replacement or repair of any

affected AlliedSignal VHF Navigation

Receiver, whichever occurs first, unless

already accomplished.

To prevent VHF navigation receiver

interference from FM radio station broadcast

frequencies, which could cause distortion of

the navigation audio and deflection of the

desired flight path of the airplane during

landing operations, possibly resulting in loss

of the airplane, accomplish the following:

(a) Remove any navigation receiver that

does not have Modification 20 installed and

return the unit to an AlliedSignal Bendix/

King service center in accordance with

AlliedSignal Bendix/King Service Bulletin

(SB) VN 411B–20, dated January 1996.

(b) Replace the navigation receiver with

one that has Modification 20 installed by an

AlliedSignal Bendix/King service center in

accordance with AlliedSignal Bendix/King

SB VN 411B–20, dated January 1996.

(c) Special flight permits may be issued in

accordance with sections 21.197 and 21.199

of the Federal Aviation Regulations (14 CFR

21.197 and 21.199) to operate the airplane to

a location where the requirements of this AD

can be accomplished.

(d) An Alternative method of compliance

or adjustment of the compliance time that

provides an equivalent level of safety may be

approved by the Manager, Wichita Aircraft

Certification Office, 1801 Airport Road,

Room 100, Mid-Continent Airport, Wichita,

Kansas 67209. The request shall be

forwarded through an appropriate FAA

Maintenance Inspector, who may add

comments and then send it to the Manager,

Wichita Aircraft Certification Office.

Note 2: Information concerning the

existence of approved alternative methods of

compliance with this AD, if any, may be

obtained from the Wichita Aircraft

Certification Office.

(e) All persons affected by this directive

may obtain copies of the document referred

to herein upon request to AlliedSignal,

General Aviation Avionics, 400 North Rogers

Road, Olathe, Kansas 66062–1212; or may

examine this document at the FAA, Central

Region, Office of the Assistant Chief Counsel,

Room 1558, 601 E. 12th Street, Kansas City,

Missouri 64106.

Issued in Kansas City, Missouri, on June 4,

1996.

Henry A. Armstrong,

Acting Manager, Small Airplane Directorate,

Aircraft Certification Service.

[FR Doc. 96–14693 Filed 6–10–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P