Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 185 / Tuesday, September 23, 2008 / Rules and Regulations 54677 

(a) Fire extinguishing systems must be 

installed and compliance must be 

shown with the following: 

(1) Except for combustor, turbine, and 

tailpipe sections of turbine-engine 

installations that contain lines or 

components carrying flammable fluids 

or gases for which a fire originating in 

these sections is shown to be 

controllable, a fire extinguisher system 

must serve each engine compartment. 

(2) The fire extinguishing system, the 

quantity of the extinguishing agent, the 

rate of discharge, and the discharge 

distribution must be adequate to 

extinguish fires. An individual ‘‘one 

shot’’ system may be used except for 

embedded engines where a ‘‘two-shot’’ 

system is required. 

(3) The fire extinguishing system for 

a nacelle must be able to simultaneously 

protect each compartment of the nacelle 

for which protection is provided. 

(b) If an auxiliary power unit is 

installed in any airplane certificated to 

this part, that auxiliary power unit 

compartment must be served by a fire 

extinguishing system meeting the 

requirements of paragraph (a)(2) of this 

section. 

SC 23.1197, Fire extinguishing 

agents—Add the requirement of 14 CFR 

§ 23.1197 while deleting, ‘‘For 

commuter category airplanes.’’ 

(a) Fire extinguishing agents must: 

(1) Be capable of extinguishing flames 

emanating from any burning fluids or 

other combustible materials in the area 

protected by the fire extinguishing 

system; and 

(2) Have thermal stability over the 

temperature range likely to be 

experienced in the compartment in 

which they are stored. 

(b) If any toxic extinguishing agent is 

used, provisions must be made to 

prevent harmful concentrations of fluid 

or fluid vapors (from leakage during 

normal operation of the airplane or as a 

result of discharging the fire 

extinguisher on the ground or in flight) 

from entering any personnel 

compartment, even though a defect may 

exist in the extinguishing system. This 

must be shown by test except for builtin carbon dioxide fuselage compartment 

fire extinguishing systems for which: 

(1) Five pounds or less of carbon 

dioxide will be discharged, under 

established fire control procedures, into 

any fuselage compartment; or 

(2) Protective breathing equipment is 

available for each flight crewmember on 

flight deck duty. 

SC 23.1199, Extinguishing agent 

containers—Add the requirements of 14 

CFR § 23.1199 while deleting, ‘‘For 

commuter category airplanes.’’ 

(a) Each extinguishing agent container 

must have a pressure relief to prevent 

bursting of the container by excessive 

internal pressures. 

(b) The discharge end of each 

discharge line from a pressure relief 

connection must be located so that 

discharge of the fire extinguishing agent 

would not damage the airplane. The line 

must also be located or protected to 

prevent clogging caused by ice or other 

foreign matter. 

(c) A means must be provided for 

each fire extinguishing agent container 

to indicate that the container has 

discharged or that the charging pressure 

is below the established minimum 

necessary for proper functioning. 

(d) The temperature of each container 

must be maintained, under intended 

operating conditions, to prevent the 

pressure in the container from— 

(1) Falling below that necessary to 

provide an adequate rate of discharge, or 

(2) Rising high enough to cause 

premature discharge. 

(e) If a pyrotechnic capsule is used to 

discharge the extinguishing agent, each 

container must be installed so that 

temperature conditions will not cause 

hazardous deterioration of the 

pyrotechnic capsule. 

SC 23.1201, Fire extinguishing 

systems materials—Add the 

requirements of § 23.1201 while 

deleting, ‘‘For commuter category 

airplanes.’’ 

Fire extinguisher system materials 

must meet the following requirements: 

(a) No material in any fire 

extinguishing system may react 

chemically with any extinguishing agent 

so as to create a hazard. 

(b) Each system component in an 

engine compartment must be fireproof. 

Issued in Kansas City, Missouri on 

September 15, 2008. 

John Colomy, 

Acting Manager, Small Airplane Directorate, 

Aircraft Certification Service. 

[FR Doc. E8–22154 Filed 9–22–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 39 

[Docket No. FAA–2008–0461; Directorate 

Identifier 2008–NE–14–AD; Amendment 39– 

15678; AD 2008–19–11] 

RIN 2120–AA64 

Airworthiness Directives; Turbomeca 

S.A. Arrius 2B1, 2B1A, 2B2, and 2K1 

Turboshaft Engines 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), Department of 

Transportation (DOT). 

ACTION: Final rule; request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: We are adopting a new 

airworthiness directive (AD) for the 

products listed above. This AD results 

from mandatory continuing 

airworthiness information (MCAI) 

provided by the European Aviation 

Safety Agency (EASA) to identify and 

correct an unsafe condition on 

Turbomeca S.A. Arrius 2B1, 2B1A, 2B2, 

and 2K1 turboshaft engines. The MCAI 

describes the unsafe condition as: 

A short circuit of some tantalum capacitors 

inside certain electronic control (EEC) units 

may lead to an in-flight shutdown on one of 

the two engines resulting from: 

—Direct activation of the overspeed 

electronic protection; 

—Non-direct activation of the electronic 

overspeed protection by lowering the 

threshold, 

—Spurious activation of the starting 

sequence; or 

—Loss of power control with no freeze of the 

fuel-metering valve. 

We are issuing this AD to prevent inflight engine shutdowns and possible 

forced autorotation landing or accident. 

DATES: This AD becomes effective 

October 8, 2008. 

The Director of the Federal Register 

approved the incorporation by reference 

of Turbomeca S.A. Mandatory Service 

Bulletin No. 319 73 2835, Update No. 1, 

dated December 21, 2006, listed in the 

AD as of October 8, 2008. 

We must receive comments on this 

AD by October 23, 2008. 

ADDRESSES: You may send comments by 

any of the following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

http://www.regulations.gov and follow 

the instructions for sending your 

comments electronically. 

• Mail: U.S. Department of 

Transportation, 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue, SE., West Building Ground 

Floor, Room W12–140, Washington, DC 

20590–0001. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES
54678 Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 185 / Tuesday, September 23, 2008 / Rules and Regulations 

• Hand Delivery: Deliver to Mail 

address above between 9 a.m. and 5 

p.m., Monday through Friday, except 

Federal holidays. 

• Fax: (202) 493–2251. 

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 AD, the regulatory 

evaluation, any comments received, and 

other information. The street address for 

the Docket Operations office (telephone 

(800) 647–5527) is the same as the Mail 

address provided in the ADDRESSES

section. Comments will be available in 

the AD docket shortly after receipt. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

James Lawrence, Aerospace Engineer, 

Engine Certification Office, FAA, Engine 

& Propeller Directorate, 12 New England 

Executive Park, Burlington, MA 01803; 

e-mail: james.lawrence@faa.gov; 

telephone (781) 238–7176; fax (781) 

238–7199. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Discussion 

EASA, which is the Technical Agent 

for the Member States of the European 

Community, has issued EASA AD 2008– 

0018, dated January 24, 2008, to correct 

an unsafe condition for the specified 

products. The EASA AD states: 

A short circuit of some tantalum capacitors 

inside certain electronic control (EEC) units 

may lead to an in-flight shutdown on one of 

the two engines resulting from: 

—Direct activation of the overspeed 

electronic protection; 

—Non-direct activation of the electronic 

overspeed protection by lowering the 

threshold, 

—Spurious activation of the starting 

sequence; or 

—Loss of power control with no freeze of the 

fuel-metering valve. 

You may obtain further information by 

examining the MCAI in the AD docket. 

Relevant Service Information 

Turbomeca S.A. has issued 

Mandatory Service Bulletin No. 319 73 

2835, Update No. 1, dated December 21, 

2006. 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 AD 

This product has been approved by 

the aviation authority of France, and is 

approved for operation in the United 

States. Pursuant to our bilateral 

agreement with France, they have 

notified us of the unsafe condition 

described in the MCAI AD and service 

information referenced above. We are 

issuing this AD because we evaluated 

all the information provided by the 

EASA and determined the unsafe 

condition exists and is likely to exist or 

develop on other products of the same 

type design. This AD requires 

identifying, and replacing or modifying 

affected EEC units that have tantalum 

capacitors installed that could have 

become brittle during their acceptance 

test. 

FAA’s Determination of the Effective 

Date 

An unsafe condition exists that 

requires the immediate adoption of this 

AD. The FAA has found that the risk to 

the flying public justifies waiving notice 

and comment prior to adoption of this 

rule because of the short compliance 

time requirement of within the next 100 

flight hours or 2 months, whichever 

occurs first. Therefore, we determined 

that notice and opportunity for public 

comment before issuing this AD are 

impracticable and that good cause exists 

for making this amendment effective in 

fewer than 30 days. 

Comments Invited 

This AD is a final rule that involves 

requirements affecting flight safety, and 

we did not precede it by notice and 

opportunity for public comment. We 

invite you to send any written relevant 

data, views, or arguments about this AD. 

Send your comments to an address 

listed under the ADDRESSES section. 

Include ‘‘Docket No. FAA–2008–0461; 

Directorate Identifier 2008–NE–14–AD’’ 

at the beginning of your comments. We 

specifically invite comments on the 

overall regulatory, economic, 

environmental, and energy aspects of 

this AD. We will consider all comments 

received by the closing date and may 

amend this AD because of 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 AD. 

Using the search function of the Web 

site, anyone can find and read the 

comments in any of our dockets, 

including, if provided, the name of the 

individual who sent the comment (or 

signed the comment on behalf of an 

association, business, labor union, etc.). 

You may review the DOT’s complete 

Privacy Act Statement in the Federal 

Register published on April 11, 2000 

(65 FR 19477–78). 

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 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 this AD: 

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); and 

3. 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 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. 

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: 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 185 / Tuesday, September 23, 2008 / Rules and Regulations 54679 

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

§ 39.13 [Amended] 

■ 2. The FAA amends § 39.13 by adding 

the following new AD: 

2008–19–11 Turbomeca S.A.: Amendment 

39–15678; Docket No. FAA–2008–0461; 

Directorate Identifier 2008–NE–14–AD. 

Effective Date 

(a) This airworthiness directive (AD) 

becomes effective October 8, 2008. 

Affected ADs 

(b) None. 

Applicability 

(c) This AD applies to Turbomeca S.A. 

Arrius 2B1, 2B1A, 2B2, and 2K1 turboshaft 

engines. These engines are installed on, but 

not limited to, Eurocopter Deutschland 

GmbH EC135, and Agusta S.p.A. A109E 

helicopters. 

Reason 

(d) European Aviation Safety Agency 

(EASA) AD No. 2008–0018, dated January 24, 

2008, states: 

A short circuit of some tantalum capacitors 

inside certain electronic control (EEC) units 

may lead to an in-flight shutdown on one of 

the two engines resulting from: 

—Direct activation of the overspeed 

electronic protection; 

—Non-direct activation of the electronic 

overspeed protection by lowering the 

threshold; 

—Spurious activation of the starting 

sequence; or 

—Loss of power control with no freeze of the 

fuel-metering valve. 

This AD requires identifying, and replacing 

or modifying affected EEC units that have 

tantalum capacitors installed that could have 

become brittle during their acceptance test. 

We are issuing this AD to prevent in-flight 

engine shutdowns and possible forced 

autorotation landing or accident. 

Actions and Compliance 

(e) Unless already done, within the next 

100 flight hours or 2 months, whichever 

occurs first after the effective date of this AD, 

do the following actions: 

(1) Identify the EEC units as listed in 

Turbomeca S.A. Mandatory Service Bulletin 

No. 319 73 2835, Update No. 1, dated 

December 21, 2006; and 

(2) For affected EECs, modify or replace the 

EEC units using the instructions of 

Turbomeca S.A. Mandatory Service Bulletin 

No. 319 73 2835, Update No. 1, dated 

December 21, 2006. 

(3) After the effective date of this AD, do 

not install an EEC with a serial number listed 

in Turbomeca S.A. Mandatory Service 

Bulletin No. 319 73 2835, Update No. 1, 

dated December 21, 2006 on any helicopter, 

unless it has been modified using the 

instructions of Turbomeca S.A. Mandatory 

Service Bulletin No. 319 73 2835, Update No. 

1, dated December 21, 2006. 

FAA AD Differences 

(f) This AD requires modification or 

replacement of both EECs if both EECs are 

affected on the same helicopter, whereas 

MCAI EASA AD 2008–0018, dated January 

24, 2008, requires modification of at least one 

EEC, if both EECs are affected, and 

modification or replacement of the remaining 

EEC, within 300 flight hours or 12 months, 

whichever occurs first. 

(g) This AD immediately prohibits 

installation of any EECs that are affected, 

whereas MCAI EASA AD 2008–0018, dated 

January 24, 2008, prohibits installation of 

those EECs after February 7, 2009. 

(h) Alternative Methods of Compliance 

(AMOCs): The Manager, Engine Certification 

Office, FAA, has the authority to approve 

AMOCs for this AD, if requested using the 

procedures found in 14 CFR 39.19. 

Related Information 

(i) Refer to MCAI EASA AD 2008–0018, 

dated January 24, 2008 for related 

information. 

(j) Contact James Lawrence, Aerospace 

Engineer, Engine Certification Office, FAA, 

Engine & Propeller Directorate, 12 New 

England Executive Park, Burlington, MA 

01803; e-mail: james.lawrence@faa.gov; 

telephone (781) 238–7176; fax (781) 238– 

7199, for more information about this AD. 

Material Incorporated by Reference 

(k) You must use Turbomeca S.A. 

Mandatory Service Bulletin No. 319 73 2835, 

Update No. 1, dated December 21, 2006, to 

do the actions required by this AD. 

(l) The Director of the Federal Register 

approved the incorporation by reference of 

this service information under 5 U.S.C. 

552(a) and 1 CFR part 51. 

(m) For service information identified in 

this AD, contact Turbomeca S.A., 40220 

Tarnos, France; telephone 33 05 59 74 40 00, 

fax 33 05 59 74 45 15. 

(n) You may review copies at the FAA, 

New England Region, Office of the Regional 

Counsel, 12 New England Executive Park, 

Burlington, MA; 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/ 

cfr/ibr-locations.html. 

Issued in Burlington, Massachusetts, on 

September 11, 2008. 

Peter A. White, 

Assistant Manager, Engine and Propeller 

Directorate, Aircraft Certification Service. 

[FR Doc. E8–21834 Filed 9–22–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Office of Surface Mining Reclamation 

and Enforcement 

30 CFR Part 901 

[SATS No. AL–074–FOR; Docket No. OSM– 

2008–0015] 

Alabama Regulatory Program 

AGENCY: Office of Surface Mining 

Reclamation and Enforcement, Interior. 

ACTION: Final rule; approval of 

amendment. 

SUMMARY: We, the Office of Surface 

Mining Reclamation and Enforcement 

(OSM), are approving an amendment to 

the Alabama regulatory program 

(Alabama program) under the Surface 

Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 

1977 (SMCRA or the Act). At its own 

initiative, Alabama proposed revisions 

to its regulations regarding permit fees 

and civil penalties to improve 

operational efficiency. 

DATES: Effective Date: September 23, 

2008. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Sherry Wilson, Director, Birmingham 

Field Office. Telephone: (205) 290– 

7282. E-mail: swilson@osmre.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background on the Alabama Program 

II. Submission of the Amendment 

III. OSM’s Findings 

IV. Summary and Disposition of Comments 

V. OSM’s Decision 

VI. Procedural Determinations 

I. Background on the Alabama Program 

Section 503(a) of the Act permits a 

State to assume primacy for the 

regulation of surface coal mining and 

reclamation operations on non-Federal 

and non-Indian lands within its borders 

by demonstrating that its State program 

includes, among other things, ‘‘a State 

law which provides for the regulation of 

surface coal mining and reclamation 

operations in accordance with the 

requirements of this Act * * *; and 

rules and regulations consistent with 

regulations issued by the Secretary 

pursuant to this Act.’’ See 30 U.S.C. 

1253(a)(1) and (7). On the basis of these 

criteria, the Secretary of the Interior 

(Secretary) conditionally approved the 

Alabama program on May 20, 1982. You 

can find background information on the 

Alabama program, including the 

Secretary’s findings, the disposition of 

comments, and the conditions of 

approval, in the May 20, 1982, Federal 

Register (47 FR 22030). You can find 

later actions on the Alabama program at 

30 CFR 901.10, 901.15, and 901.16. 

II. Submission of the Amendment 

By letter dated July 18, 2008 

(Administrative Record No. AL–0658), 

and at its own initiative, Alabama sent 

us an amendment to its program under 

SMCRA (30 U.S.C. 1201 et seq.). The 

amendment also included changes to its 

regulations regarding permit fees and 

civil penalties. 

We announced receipt of the 

proposed amendment in the August 8, 

2008, Federal Register (73 FR 46213). In 

the same document, we opened the 


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