Document ID: FAA-2013-0477-0001
Agency: faa
Document Type: Proposed Rule
Title: Airworthiness Directives: Eurocopter France (Eurocopter) Model Helicopters
Posted Date: 2013-06-17T04:00Z

[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 116 (Monday, June 17, 2013)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 36129-36131]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-14279]

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

  Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 116 / Monday, June 17, 2013 / 
Proposed Rules  

[[Page 36129]]

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 39

[Docket No. FAA-2013-0477; Directorate Identifier 2011-SW-015-AD]
RIN 2120-AA64

Airworthiness Directives; Eurocopter France (Eurocopter) Model 
Helicopters

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration, DOT.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).

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SUMMARY: We propose to supersede an existing airworthiness directive 
(AD) for Eurocopter Model AS350B, BA, B1, B2, C, D, and D1 helicopters 
and Model AS355E, F, F1, F2, and N helicopters with certain part-
numbered tail gearbox (TGB) control levers installed. The existing AD 
currently requires repetitive visual inspections of the TGB control 
lever for a crack and replacing a cracked TGB control lever with an 
airworthy TGB control lever. Since we issued that AD, we have received 
reports of cracking on the opposite area of the TGB control lever. This 
proposed AD would retain the current requirements and would also 
require inspecting other areas of the TGB control lever not previously 
inspected and at additional inspection intervals. The proposed actions 
are intended to prevent failure of the TGB control lever, loss of tail 
rotor control, and subsequent loss of control of the helicopter.

DATES: We must receive comments on this proposed AD by August 16, 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.
     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 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 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: Robert Grant, Aviation Safety 
Engineer, Rotorcraft Directorate, Safety Management Group, 2601 Meacham 
Blvd., Fort Worth, TX 76137, telephone 817-222-5110, email 
robert.grant@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

    On August 2, 2010, we issued AD 2010-11-51, Amendment 39-16396 (75 
FR 50874, August 18, 2010) for Eurocopter Model AS350B, BA, B1, B2, C, 
D, and D1 helicopters and Model AS355E, F, F1, F2, and N helicopters 
with certain part-numbered TGB control levers installed. AD 2010-11-51 
requires repetitive visual inspections of the TGB control lever for a 
crack and replacing a cracked TGB control lever with an airworthy TGB 
control lever. AD 2010-11-51 also contains optional terminating actions 
for the inspection requirements by either replacing a TBG control lever 
with an airworthy TGB control lever that is marked with an ``X'' near 
the part number, or stripping and dye-penetrant inspecting the rework 
area for a crack and either requires reworking and marking the TGB 
control lever if there is no crack or removing and replacing the 
cracked TGB control lever if there is a crack. AD 2010-11-51 was 
prompted by Emergency AD No. 2010-0082-E, dated April 27, 2010, and 
corrected April 28, 2010 (AD No. 2010-0082-E), issued by the European 
Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), which is the Technical Agent for Member 
States of the European Union. The actions in AD 2010-11-51 are intended 
to prevent failure of the TGB control lever, loss of tail rotor 
control, and subsequent loss of control of the helicopter.

Actions Since Existing AD Was Issued

    Since we issued AD 2010-11-51 (75 FR 50874, August 18, 2010), we 
have received reports of cracking in a TGB control lever on the area 
opposite the area required to be inspected. EASA has issued EASA 
Emergency AD No. 2011-0038-E, dated March 4, 2011 (AD No. 2011-0038-E), 
and superseding EASA

[[Page 36130]]

Emergency AD No. 2010-0082-E, to correct an unsafe condition for the 
specified Eurocopter model. EASA advises that since issuing EASA 
Emergency AD No. 2010-0082-E, Eurocopter found cracks on the area 
opposite the area required to be inspected on the affected control 
levers. EASA Emergency AD No. 2011-0038-E retains the requirements of 
EASA Emergency AD No. 2010-082-E and adds repetitive inspections for 
the area opposite the control levers.

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 helicopters of these same type designs.

Related Service Information

    Eurocopter has issued one Eurocopter Emergency Alert Service 
Bulletin (EASB), Revision 2, dated February 28, 2011, with four 
different numbers. EASB No. 05.00.62 is for Model AS350 helicopters; 
EASB No. 05.00.57 is for Model AS355 helicopters; EASB No. 05.00.38 is 
for military Model AS550 helicopters; and EASB No. 05.00.35 is for 
military Model AS555 helicopters. The military models are not type-
certificated in the United States. The EASB specifies visually 
inspecting the TGB control lever for a crack at the last flight of each 
day, without exceeding 10 flying hours between inspections. The EASB 
also describes a rework procedure for affected TGB control levers, 
which must be done within 660 flying hours and no later than June 30, 
2011. Completion of the rework procedure is indicated by marking the 
control lever with a letter ``X.'' EASA classified this EASB as 
mandatory and issued AD No. 2011-0038-E to ensure the continued 
airworthiness of these helicopters.

Proposed AD Requirements

    This proposed AD would retain the requirements in AD 2010-11-51 (75 
FR 50874, August 18, 2010) to perform repetitive visual inspections in 
a certain area on each TGB control lever not marked with an ``X'' and 
would require replacing a cracked part with a part not listed in the 
applicability paragraph of the AD. This proposed AD would also require 
inspecting another area of each TGB control lever at additional 
inspection intervals. Also, this proposed AD would require, within a 
specified time, replacing each TGB control lever with a reworked TGB 
control lever marked with an ``X'' near the P/N or with a TGB control 
lever with a P/N not listed in the applicability of the AD.

Differences Between This Proposed AD and the EASA AD

    This AD differs from EASA Emergency AD No. 2011-0038-E as follows:
     We include the Eurocopter Model AS350C and AS350D1 
helicopters that may contain the affected TGB control lever. We do not 
include the Eurocopter Model AS350BB helicopter because it is not type-
certificated in the United States.
     We do not require an ``after last flight''of the day 
inspection.
     We do not allow a pilot to inspect for a crack.
     We do not require reworking noninstalled control levers.
     We do not include a calendar compliance time for reworking 
the TGB control lever if there is not a crack.
     We do not require you to contact Eurocopter if a crack is 
found during any inspection.

Costs of Compliance

    We estimate that this proposed AD would affect 791 helicopters of 
U.S. registry. We estimate that operators may incur the following costs 
in order to comply with this proposed AD: The initial and repetitive 
inspections for a crack in the TGB control lever would take a minimal 
amount of time. If necessary, replacing a control lever would take 
about 3 work hours at an average labor rate of $85 per work hour. The 
required parts would cost about $2,103 per helicopter. Based on these 
figures, we estimate the total cost of the proposed AD on U.S. 
operators would be $2,358 per helicopter to replace the control lever.

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 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 removing airworthiness directive (AD) 
2010-11-51, Amendment 39-16396 (75 FR 50874, August 18, 2010), and 
adding the following new AD:

Eurocopter France: Docket No. FAA-2013-0477; Directorate Identifier 
2011-SW-015-AD.

(a) Applicability

    This AD applies to Model AS350B, BA, B1, B2, C, D, and D1 
helicopters and Model

[[Page 36131]]

AS355E, F, F1, F2, and N helicopters, with a tail gearbox (TGB) 
control lever, part number (P/N) 350A33-1058-00, P/N 350A33-1058-01, 
P/N 350A33-1058-02, or P/N 350A33-1058-03, both with and without an 
``X'' marked near the P/N, installed, certificated in any category.

(b) Unsafe Condition

    This AD defines the unsafe condition as a crack in the TGB 
control lever. This condition could result in failure of the TGB 
control lever, loss of tail rotor control, and subsequent loss of 
control of the helicopter.

(c) Affected ADs

    This AD supersedes AD 2010-11-51, Amendment 39-16396 (75 FR 
50874, August 18, 2010).

 (d) Comments Due Date

    We must receive comments by August 16, 2013.

(e) 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.

(f) Required Actions

    (1) For helicopters with a lever not marked with an ``X'' near 
the P/N, within 10 hours time-in-service (TIS), and thereafter at 
intervals not to exceed 10 hours TIS, using a mirror and appropriate 
light source, visually inspect the TGB control lever for a crack as 
shown in area ``A'' of Figure 2 of Eurocopter Emergency Alert 
Service Bulletin (EASB), Revision 2, dated February 28, 2011, No. 
05.00.62 for Model AS350 helicopters and No. 05.00.57 for Model 
AS355 helicopters (EASB). If there is a crack, before further 
flight, replace each cracked TGB control lever with a TGB control 
lever with a P/N not listed in paragraph (a) of this AD.
    (2) For Model AS355N helicopters, within 110 hours TIS, or if 
the helicopter has reached 100 or more hours TIS, within the next 10 
hours TIS, and thereafter at intervals not to exceed 110 hours TIS, 
using a mirror and appropriate light source, inspect each TGB 
control lever for a crack as shown in area ``C'' of Figure 8 of the 
EASB.
    (3) Within 660 hours TIS, replace each TGB control lever with a 
reworked TGB control lever marked with an ``X'' near the P/N or with 
a TGB control lever with a P/N not listed in paragraph (a) of this 
AD.
    (4) For all model helicopters except Model AS355N, within 660 
hours TIS, or if the helicopter has reached 605 or more hours TIS 
within the next 55 hours TIS, and thereafter at intervals not to 
exceed 660 hours TIS, using a mirror and appropriate light source, 
inspect each TGB control lever for a crack as shown in area ``C'' of 
figure 8 of the EASB.
    (5) If there is a crack, before further flight, replace each 
cracked TGB control lever with a TGB control lever with a P/N not 
listed in paragraph (a) of this AD.

(g) Alternative Methods of Compliance (AMOCs)

    (1) The Manager, Safety Management Group, FAA, may approve AMOCs 
for this AD. Send your proposal to: Robert Grant, Aviation Safety 
Engineer, FAA, Rotorcraft Directorate, Safety Management Group, 2601 
Meacham Blvd., Fort Worth, TX 76137, telephone (817) 222-5110, email 
robert.grant@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.

(h) Additional Information

    (1) Eurocopter Alert Service Bulletin No. 05.00.62 and No. 
05.00.57, Revision 2, dated February 28, 2011, are co-published as 
one document along with EASB No. 05.00.38 and EASB No. 05.00.35, 
which are not incorporated by reference in this AD.
    (2) For service information identified in this 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 a copy 
of the service information at the FAA, Office of the Regional 
Counsel, Southwest Region, 2601 Meacham Blvd., Room 663, Fort Worth, 
Texas 76137.
    (3) The subject of this AD is addressed in European Aviation 
Safety Agency Emergency AD No. 2011-0038-E, dated March 4, 2011.

(i) Subject

    Joint Aircraft Service Component (JASC) Code: 6720 Tail Rotor 
Control System.

    Issued in Fort Worth, Texas, on May 28, 2013.
Kim Smith,
Directorate Manager, Rotorcraft Directorate, Aircraft Certification 
Service.
[FR Doc. 2013-14279 Filed 6-14-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-13-P