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Monday, March 15, 2004

Current Regulatory Activity

 

 

Current Regulatory Activity
This is a selective listing of items deemed particularly important.
Date posted on Federal Register and Document Type
Summary of Situation
Action Date & Comments
March 11 Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) FR Doc 04-5520 Docket No. 2003-NM-163-AD Electrical system safety Bombardier CL-600 regional jets. Chafing of electrical cables of spoiler and brake pressure sensor unit on both sides of the wing root could result in loss of control. Comments due April 12. Manufacturing/design defect. Harnesses were routed through misaligned lightening holes in the wing box. Tight routing of the harness and wing flex and vibration can aggravate chafing. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) action based on three reports of chafing from Transport Canada (TC).
March 11 NPRM FR Doc 04-5519 Docket No. 2003-NM-183-AD Structural safety Airbus A330 series airplanes. Modifications required to reinforce fuselage structure. Modification work includes probe inspections for cracking of fastener holes, drilling and reaming, and replacement with improved fasteners. Comments due April 12. FAA action follows that of French Direction G�n�rale de l'Aviation Civile (DGAC), which advised that during fatigue testing, cracking propagated in the center box junction and upper section of the fuselage. Such cracking, if not corrected, could reduce structural integrity of the fuselage.
March 11 NPRM FR Doc 04-5518 Docket No. 2003-NM-251-AD Pilot seat safety Douglas DC-9 and MD-88 series airplanes. To prevent unwanted movement of pilots' seats during takeoff and landing. Uncommanded seat movement could interfere with pilots' safe operation of the aircraft. Comments due April 26. Manufacturing defect. Mis-alignment of floor seat tracks could result in less than complete engagement of seat locking pins with consequent surprise movement of seat during acceleration and deceleration. Rocking chairs for pilots not desired.
March 11 NPRM FR Doc 04-5517 Docket No. 2003-NM-67-AD Accuracy of navigational data Embraer EMB-135 and EMB-145 regional jets. Inspect, clean, repair, grease and replace glide slope antenna to prevent display of erroneous or misleading information to the flight crew. Comments due April 12. FAA action follows that of Brazil's Departamento de Aviacao Civil (DAC), which required compliance with Embraer service bulletin (SB). Operators must clean glide slope antenna base, repair damage, grease electrical connectors and reinstall antenna with a new gel gasket. Affects 365 airplanes in U.S. registry.
March 11 Final Rule FR Doc 04-4937 Docket No. 2001-NM-362-AD, transmitting AD 2004-05-20 Electrical and hydraulic systems safety Douglas DC-10, MD-10 and MD-11 airplanes. Modify wiring of electric motor operated hydraulic pumps in the right wheel well by installing new support bracket(s), clips, sleeving, and re-routing of wiring. Motor and/or wiring failure could result in fire. Effective April 15. Inadequate design. Fire in wheel well is not good. Overheated tire can go "BOOM!" like a rubber bomb (see ASW, Aug. 7, 2000). FAA action requires compliance with Boeing alert SB of Aug. 2003. Comply w/in 18 months. Affects nearly 400 airplanes in U.S. registry.
March 10 Final Rule FR Doc 04-4685 Docket No. 2001-NM-148-AD Cabin air quality and safety British Aerospace BAe 146 series airplanes. Inspect/replace components as necessary to prevent contamination of cabin/cockpit air by oil breakdown products. The Statens haverikommission (SHK), the Swedish Board of Accident Investigation, documented 22 cases where BAe 146 flight crews were affected by oil- contaminated cabin air (see ASW, Dec. 17, 2001). Effective April 14. Cockpit air can be contaminated by volatile organic compounds (VOCs), produced when oil is heated. The polluted air supply has, on occasion, seriously impaired flight crews' ability to safely fly the airplane (see ASW, Oct. 18, 1999). Accomplish manufacturer SB w/in 500 flights.
March 8 NPRM FR Doc. 04-5073 Docket No. 2003-NM-194-AD Electrical system safety Douglas-built MD-90 series airplanes. Repetitive inspections and replacement as necessary of static port heaters and insulators. To prevent electrical arcing which could create smoke/fire in the cabin. Comments due April 22. This is the first shoe to drop; the second and much bigger shoe is contained in the next action, outlined immediately below. Manufacturing/installation defect, which resulted in a fire on an MD-88. This incident triggered a Boeing study of the wiring installation, the findings of which (not disclosed) prompt this action. Inspect w/in 18 months and at 48-month intervals thereafter. If assembly fails the specified functional test, replace before further flight.
March 8 NPRM FR Doc. 04-5072 Docket No. 2003-NM-198-AD Electrical system safety Douglas-built DC-9, MD-81, -82, -83, -87 and -88 airplanes. Repetitive inspections and replacement as necessary of static port heaters and insulators. To prevent electrical arcing which could create smoke/fire in the cabin. Comments due April 22. Same as above. Manufacturing defect. Affects 1,125 airplanes in U.S. registry.
March 5 NPRMFR Doc. 04-4927 Docket No. 2002-NM-237-AD Electrical system safety Douglas DC-10-30. Inspect power feeder cable clamping for auxiliary power unit (APU) to ensure correct clamp installation. Chafing of cables and consequent arcing could lead to smoke/fire in the APU compartment. Comments due April 19. One such event occurred on a DC-10, prompting this action. Actually, this NPRM follows earlier action for the entire DC-10 fleet but whose applicability missed one airplane, which is the subject of this action. Inspect w/in 12 months. If chafing is found, clamp properly per SB before further flight.
March 5 NPRM FR Doc. 04-4929 Docket No. 2003-NM-218-AD In-flight fire protection Embraer EMB-145 regional jets. Inspect, repair or replace firewall to prevent uncontained spread of an Auxiliary Power Unit (APU) fire to the airplane structure. Comments due April 5. Undesired source of auxiliary cabin heat. FAA action follows that of Brazil's DAC, mandating compliance with Embraer SB. If cracking exceeds length specified in SB, the whole firewall must be replaced at a cost of more than $11,000 per airplane.
March 5 NPRM FR Doc. 04-4933 Docket No. 2003-NM-138-AD Electrical system safety Dornier 328-300 airplanes. Modification of ground cooling fan to prevent overheating of connecting terminals with consequent smoke/fire in cockpit and cabin. Comments due April 5. Design deficiency. FAA action follows that of Germany's Luftfahrt-Bundesamt (LBA), which made relevant Dornier SB mandatory. Replace wire subassemblies, install hexagon nut on positive terminal to improve installation, and replace flat washer with spring washer. Inspect/modify w/in 60 days.
March 5 NPRM FR Doc. 04-4931 Docket No. 2002-NM-323-AD Electrical system safety Boeing 737 Next Generation series airplanes. Install spacers to secure wire bundles for fuel boost pumps to prevent arcing in a fuel leakage zone, which could result in an uncontrolled fire. Comments due April 19. Design deficiency. Unsupported bundles in the landing gear well can be chafed by airflow buffeting. In one case, the chafing occurred with just two flights! Boeing alert SB of Dec. 18, 2003, Rev. 2 applies. Inspect/repair within 6 months. Action affects 527 airplanes of U.S. registry and 1,284 worldwide. A big deal.
March 5 NPRM FR Doc. 04-4936 Docket No. 2002-NM-337-AD Electrical system safety Airbus A300 B2 & B4 series airplanes. Add deflectors and sealant to prevent water condensation dripping on electronics rack, leading to arcing, loss of electrical power and reduced controllability in flight. Comments due April 9. Action based on short circuit of an in-service airplane causing electrical contact to "melt down." Comply w/in 12 months. French DGAC made Airbus alert SB mandatory 8 months after it was issued. FAA follows DGAC action by 12 months.
March 5 NPRM FR Doc. 04-4926 Docket No. 2003-NM-272-AD Electrical system safety Airbus A330 series airplanes. Comply with SB to prevent uncommanded in-flight shutdown of APU and consequent loss of critical electrical systems and potential for reduced controllability of the airplane when operated in an emergency electrical configuration. Comments due April 5. Implications for extended range operations (ETOPS) where APU operation may be necessary in engine-out situation to preserve viability of a diversion. Problem discovered during flight tests. APU switched from "in flight" to "on ground" mode, causing overspeed and automatic shutdown. Airbus issued SB June 11, 2003. DGAC followed three months later ordering mandatory compliance with SB. FAA action here follows DGAC by 5 months.
March 5 Final Rule FR Doc 04-4564 Docket No. 2001-NM-301-AD, transmitting AD 2004-05-04 Fuel system safety Airbus A319 & A320 series airplanes. To prevent arcing between the fuel quantity indication (FQI) probes and structure should the airplane be struck by lightning, with consequent risk of fuel tank explosion. Effective April 9. Within 4,000 flight hours inspect FQI probe support brackets. If less than 6 mm (0.236 inch), install components in correct position per Airbus SB. FAA action follows by nearly 3 years DGAC action of June 27, 2001, making SB mandatory.
March 5 Final Rule FR Doc 04-4565 Docket No. 2002-NM-113-AD transmitting AD 2004-05-05 Fuel system safety Airbus A300 and A300-600 series airplanes. To prevent arcing between the fuel quantity indication (FQI) probes and structure should the airplane be struck by lightning, with consequent risk of fuel tank explosion. Effective April 9. Within 4,000 flight hours inspect FQI probe support brackets. If less than 6 mm (0.236 inch), install components in correct position per Airbus SB.
Source: Federal Register
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