Document ID: FAA-2017-0792-0001
Agency: faa
Document Type: Proposed Rule
Title: Airworthiness Directives: General Electric Company Turbofan Engines
Posted Date: 2017-09-07T04:00Z

[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 172 (Thursday, September 7, 2017)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 42261-42263]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-19018]

 ========================================================================
 Proposed Rules
                                                 Federal Register
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
 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.
 
 ========================================================================
 

  Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 172 / Thursday, September 7, 2017 / 
Proposed Rules  

[[Page 42261]]

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 39

[Docket No. FAA-2017-0792; Product Identifier 2017-NE-28-AD]
RIN 2120-AA64

Airworthiness Directives; General Electric Company Turbofan 
Engines

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: We propose to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) for 
certain General Electric Company (GE) CF6-80A, CF6-80A1, CF6-80A2, CF6-
80A3, CF6-80C2A1, CF6-80C2A2, CF6-80C2A3, CF6-80C2A5, CF6-80C2A5F, CF6-
80C2A8, CF6-80C2B1, CF6-80C2B1F, CF6-80C2B1F1, CF6-80C2B1F2, CF6-
80C2B2, CF6-80C2B2F, CF6-80C2B3F, CF6-80C2B4, CF6-80C2B4F, CF6-80C2B5F, 
CF6-80C2B6, CF6-80C2B6F, CF6-80C2B6FA, CF6-80C2B7F, CF6-80C2B8F, CF6-
80C2D1F, CF6-80C2L1F, and CF6-80C2K1F turbofan engines. This proposed 
AD was prompted by an uncontained failure of a high-pressure turbine 
(HPT) stage 2 disk. This proposed AD would require ultrasonic 
inspection (UI) of HPT stage 1 and 2 disks. We are proposing this AD to 
address the unsafe condition on these products.

DATES: We must receive comments on this proposed AD by October 23, 
2017.

ADDRESSES: You may send comments, using the procedures found in 14 CFR 
11.43 and 11.45, by any of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
     Fax: 202-493-2251.
     Mail: U.S. Department of Transportation, Docket 
Operations, M-30, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New 
Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590.
     Hand Delivery: Deliver to Mail address above between 9 
a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
    For service information identified in this NPRM, contact General 
Electric Company, GE Aviation, Room 285, 1 Neumann Way, Cincinnati, OH 
45215; phone: 513-552-3272; email: aviation.fleetsupport@ge.com. You 
may view this service information at the FAA, Engine and Propeller 
Standards Branch, 1200 District Avenue, Burlington, MA. For information 
on the availability of this material at the FAA, call 781-238-7125.

Examining the AD Docket

    You may examine the AD docket on the Internet at http://www.regulations.gov by searching for and locating Docket No. FAA-2017-
0792; 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 NPRM, the regulatory evaluation, any comments received, 
and other information. The street address for the Docket Office (phone: 
800-647-5527) is in the ADDRESSES section. Comments will be available 
in the AD docket shortly after receipt.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Herman Mak, Aerospace Engineer, FAA, 
ECO Branch, Compliance and Airworthiness Division, 1200 District Ave., 
Burlington, MA 01803; phone: 781-238-7147; fax: 781-238-7199; email: 
herman.mak@faa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Comments Invited

    We invite you to send any written relevant data, views, or 
arguments about this proposal. Send your comments to an address listed 
under the ADDRESSES section. Include ``Docket No. FAA-2017-0792; 
Product Identifier 2017-NE-28-AD'' at the beginning of your comments. 
We specifically invite comments on the overall regulatory, economic, 
environmental, and energy aspects of this NPRM. We will consider all 
comments received by the closing date and may amend this NPRM 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 NPRM.

Discussion

    We became aware of an unsafe condition from an uncontained failure 
of an HPT stage 2 disk that resulted in a fire. This unsafe condition 
was also determined to exist on some HPT stage 1 disks. This condition, 
if not corrected, could result in uncontained HPT disk release, damage 
to the engine, and damage to the airplane.

Related Service Information Under 1 CFR Part 51

    We reviewed GE Service Bulletin (SB) CF6-80C2 S/B 72-1562, Revision 
01, dated July 28, 2017. The SB describes procedures for UI of HPT 
stage 1 and 2 disks. This service information is reasonably available 
because the interested parties have access to it through their normal 
course of business or by the means identified in the ADDRESSES section.

FAA's Determination

    We are proposing this AD because we evaluated all the relevant 
information and determined the unsafe condition described previously is 
likely to exist or develop in other products of the same type design.

Proposed AD Requirements

    This proposed AD would require UI of HPT stage 1 and 2 disks.

Costs of Compliance

    We estimate that this proposed AD affects 640 engines installed on 
airplanes of U.S. registry.
    We estimate the following costs to comply with this proposed AD:

[[Page 42262]]

                                                 Estimated Costs
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                     Cost per      Cost on U.S.
                Action                         Labor cost           Parts cost        product        operators
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
UI of HPT disk........................  10 work-hours x $85 per               $0            $850        $544,000
                                         hour = $850.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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.
    This AD is issued in accordance with authority delegated by the 
Executive Director, Aircraft Certification Service, as authorized by 
FAA Order 8000.51C. In accordance with that order, issuance of ADs is 
normally a function of the Compliance and Airworthiness Division, but 
during this transition period, the Executive Director has delegated the 
authority to issue ADs applicable to engines, propellers, and 
associated appliances to the Manager, Engine and Propeller Standards 
Branch, Policy and Innovation Division.

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 above, 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, 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.

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):

General Electric Company: Docket No. FAA-2017-0792; Product 
Identifier 2017-NE-28-AD.

(a) Comments Due Date

    We must receive comments by October 23, 2017.

(b) Affected ADs

    None.

(c) Applicability

    This AD applies to General Electric Company (GE) CF6-80A, CF6-
80A1, CF6-80A2, CF6-80A3, CF6-80C2A1, CF6-80C2A2, CF6-80C2A3, CF6-
80C2A5, CF6-80C2A5F, CF6-80C2A8, CF6-80C2B1, CF6-80C2B1F, CF6-
80C2B1F1, CF6-80C2B1F2, CF6-80C2B2, CF6-80C2B2F, CF6-80C2B3F, CF6-
80C2B4, CF6-80C2B4F, CF6-80C2B5F, CF6-80C2B6, CF6-80C2B6F, CF6-
80C2B6FA, CF6-80C2B7F, CF6-80C2B8F, CF6-80C2D1F, CF6-80C2L1F, and 
CF6-80C2K1F turbofan engines with high-pressure turbine (HPT) disks 
with part numbers and serial numbers listed in Table 1 and 2 of 
Appendix A in GE Service Bulletin (SB) CF6-80C2 S/B 72-1562, 
Revision 01, dated July 28, 2017.

(d) Subject

    Joint Aircraft System Component (JASC) Code 7250, Turbine/
Turboprop Engine--Turbine Section.

(e) Unsafe Condition

    This AD was prompted by an uncontained failure of a HPT stage 2 
disk. We are issuing this AD to prevent failure of the HPT disks. 
The unsafe condition, if not corrected, could result in an 
uncontained HPT disk release, damage to the engine, and damage to 
the airplane.

(f) Compliance

    Comply with this AD within the compliance times specified, 
unless already done.

(g) Required Actions

    After the effective date of this AD, perform an ultrasonic 
inspection for cracks in stage 1 and stage 2 HPT disk at each piece-
part level exposure in accordance with the Accomplishment 
Instructions, paragraph 3.A.(2) of GE SB CF6-80C2 S/B 72-1562, 
Revision 01, dated July 28, 2017.

(h) Definition

    For the purpose of this AD, ``piece-part exposure'' of the stage 
1 or 2 disk is removal of that disk from the engine and removal of 
all blades from that disk.

(i) Alternative Methods of Compliance (AMOCs)

    (1) The Manager, FAA, ECO Branch, Compliance and Airworthiness 
Division, 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 ECO Branch, send it to 
the attention of the person identified in paragraph (j)(1) of this 
AD. You may email your request to: ANE-AD-AMOC@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.

(j) Related Information

    (1) For more information about this AD, contact Herman Mak, 
Aerospace Engineer, Aerospace Engineer, FAA, ECO Branch, Compliance 
and Airworthiness Division, 1200 District Avenue, Burlington, MA 
01803; phone: 781-238-7147; fax: 781-238-7199; email: 
herman.mak@faa.gov.
    (2) For service information identified in this AD, contact 
General Electric Company, GE Aviation, Room 285, 1 Neumann Way, 
Cincinnati, OH 45215; phone: 513-552-3272; email: 
aviation.fleetsupport@ge.com.
    (3) You may view this referenced service information at the FAA, 
Engine and Propeller Standards Branch, Policy and Innovation 
Division, 1200 District Avenue, Burlington, MA 01803. For 
information on the

[[Page 42263]]

availability of this material at the FAA, call 781-238-7125.

    Issued in Burlington, Massachusetts, on September 1, 2017.
Robert J. Ganley,
Manager, Engine and Propeller Standards Branch, Aircraft Certification 
Service.
 [FR Doc. 2017-19018 Filed 9-6-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-13-P