[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 84 (Wednesday, May 1, 2013)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 25361-25363]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-09433]
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Rules and Regulations
Federal Register
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This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains regulatory documents
having general applicability and legal effect, most of which are keyed
to and codified in the Code of Federal Regulations, which is published
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Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 84 / Wednesday, May 1, 2013 / Rules
and Regulations
[[Page 25361]]
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Aviation Administration
14 CFR Part 39
[Docket No. FAA-2012-0773; Directorate Identifier 2009-SW-71-AD;
Amendment 39-17352; AD 2013-03-18]
RIN 2120-AA64
Airworthiness Directives; Eurocopter Deutschland GmbH Helicopters
AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: We are adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for
Eurocopter Deutschland GmbH (Eurocopter) Model MBB-BK 117 C-2
helicopters. This AD requires inspecting the long tail rotor drive
shaft assembly for blind rivets, and if any blind rivets are installed,
replacing that shaft assembly. This AD was prompted by the discovery
that some helicopters have blind rivets installed in the place of solid
rivets in the long tail rotor drive shaft. The actions of this AD are
intended to detect blind rivets installed in the long tail rotor drive
shaft, which could lead to failure of the tail rotor drive shaft and
subsequent loss of control of the helicopter.
DATES: This AD is effective June 5, 2013.
The Director of the Federal Register approved the incorporation by
reference of a certain document listed in this AD as of June 5, 2013.
ADDRESSES: For service information identified in this AD, contact
American Eurocopter Corporation, 2701 N. Forum Drive, Grand Prairie,
Texas 75052; telephone (972) 641-0000 or (800) 232-0323; fax (972) 641-
3775; or at http://www.eurocopter.com/techpub. You may review the
referenced service information at the FAA, Office of the Regional
Counsel, Southwest Region, 2601 Meacham Blvd., Room 663, Fort Worth,
Texas 76137.
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, any incorporated-by-reference
service information, the economic evaluation, any comments received,
and other information. The street address for the Docket Operations
Office (phone: 800-647-5527) is U.S. Department of Transportation,
Docket Operations Office, M-30, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-
140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jim Grigg, Manager, Safety Management
Group, Rotorcraft Directorate, FAA, 2601 Meacham Blvd., Fort Worth,
Texas 76137; telephone (817) 222-5110; email [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Discussion
On July 26, 2012, at 77 FR 43736, the Federal Register published
our notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM), which proposed to amend 14
CFR part 39 to include an AD that would apply to Eurocopter Model MBB-
BK 117 C-2 helicopters. That NPRM proposed to require, within 100 hours
time-in-service (TIS), inspecting the long tail rotor drive shaft
assembly for blind rivets. If there are no blind rivets installed on
the shaft assembly, no further action would be required by the AD. If
there are one or more blind rivets installed on the shaft assembly, the
NPRM proposed to require replacing the shaft assembly of the long tail
rotor drive with an airworthy shaft assembly before further flight. The
proposed requirements were intended to prevent failure of the tail
rotor drive shaft and subsequent loss of control of the helicopter.
The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), which is the Technical
Agent for the Member States of the European Union, issued EASA AD No.
2009-0119, dated June 4, 2009, to correct an unsafe condition for the
Eurocopter Model MBB-BK 117 C-2 helicopters. EASA advises that an error
was discovered in the Eurocopter aircraft maintenance manual (AMM),
which erroneously specifies replacing the solid rivets on the long tail
rotor drive shaft with blind rivets. All delivered helicopters had the
long tail rotor drive shafts installed during production fitted with
the correct solid rivets. The long tail rotor drive shafts repaired in-
service in accordance with the AMM may have blind rivets installed.
This condition, if not corrected, could lead to a significant reduction
of the life of the long tail rotor drive shaft, failure of the long
tail rotor drive shaft, and subsequent loss of control of the
helicopter.
Comments
We gave the public the opportunity to participate in developing
this AD, but we did not receive any comments on the NPRM (77 FR 43736,
July 26, 2012).
FAA's Determination
This helicopter has been approved by the aviation authority of
Germany and is approved for operation in the United States. Pursuant to
our bilateral agreement with Germany, EASA, its technical
representative, has notified us of the unsafe condition described in
the EASA AD. We are issuing this AD because we evaluated all
information provided by EASA and determined the unsafe condition exists
and is likely to exist or develop on other helicopters of the same type
design and that air safety and the public interest require adopting the
AD requirements as proposed except we are incorporating a figure by
reference instead of including it in our AD to meet current publication
requirements. This change is consistent with the intent of the
proposals in the NPRM (77 FR 43736, July 26, 2012) and will not
increase the economic burden on any operator nor increase the scope of
the AD.
Differences Between This AD and the EASA AD
This AD uses the term ``TIS'' instead of ``flight hours.''
Related Service Information
Eurocopter has issued Alert Service Bulletin No. MBB BK117 C-2-65A-
003, dated May 4, 2009 (ASB), which specifies inspecting long tail
rotor drive shafts to determine what type of rivets are installed. If
one or more blind rivets are installed, the ASB specifies replacing the
long tail rotor drive shaft assembly with a serviceable long tail
[[Page 25362]]
rotor drive shaft assembly. EASA classified this ASB as mandatory and
issued EASA AD No. 2009-0119, dated June 4, 2009, to ensure the
continued airworthiness of these helicopters.
Costs of Compliance
We estimate that this AD will affect 88 helicopters of U.S.
registry. We estimate that operators may incur the following costs in
order to comply with this AD:
It will take about 2 work hours to inspect and replace the
long tail rotor drive shaft at an average labor rate of $85 per work
hour.
Required parts to replace each long tail rotor drive shaft
assembly cost about $4,600 each.
Based upon these figures, the total cost per helicopter would be
$4,770. The total cost for the entire U.S. fleet would be $419,760,
assuming that the long tail rotor drive shaft assembly is required to
be replaced on the entire fleet.
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 helicopters identified in this
rulemaking action.
Regulatory Findings
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 that this AD:
(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);
(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 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
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):
2013-03-18 Eurocopter Deutschland GmbH (Eurocopter): Amendment 39-
17352; Docket No. FAA-2012-0773; Directorate Identifier 2009-SW-71-
AD.
(a) Applicability
This AD applies to Model MBB-BK 117 C-2 helicopters, with long
tail rotor drive shaft assembly part number B651M1002101 or
B651M1002102 installed, certificated in any category.
(b) Unsafe Condition
This AD defines the unsafe condition as the installation of
blind rivets instead of solid rivets in the long tail rotor drive
shaft. This condition could result in failure of the long tail rotor
drive shaft and subsequent loss of control of the helicopter.
(c) Effective Date
This AD becomes effective June 5, 2013.
(d) 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.
(e) Required Actions
Within 100 hours time-in-service, inspect the long tail rotor
drive shaft assembly for blind rivets as indicated in sections A-A
and B-B of Figure 1 of Eurocopter Alert Service Bulletin No. MBB
BK117 C-2-65A-003, dated May 4, 2009 (ASB).
(1) If there are no blind rivets installed on the shaft
assembly, no further action is required by this AD.
(2) If there is one or more blind rivets installed on the shaft
assembly in the areas depicted in Figure 1 of the ASB, before
further flight, replace the shaft assembly of the long tail rotor
drive shaft with an airworthy shaft assembly that does not have
blind rivets installed.
(3) After the effective date of this AD, do not install a tail
rotor drive shaft assembly that has blind rivets installed.
(f) Alternative Methods of Compliance (AMOCs)
(1) The Manager, Safety Management Group, FAA, may approve AMOCs
for this AD. Send your proposal to: Jim Grigg, Manager, Safety
Management Group, Rotorcraft Directorate, FAA, 2601 Meacham Blvd.,
Fort Worth, Texas 76137; telephone (817) 222-5110; email
[email protected].
(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.
(g) Additional Information
The subject of this AD is addressed in European Aviation Safety
Agency AD No. 2009-0119, dated June 4, 2009.
(h) Subject
Joint Aircraft System/Component (JASC) Code: 6510, Tail Rotor
Drive Shaft.
(i) Material Incorporated by Reference
(1) The Director of the Federal Register approved the
incorporation by reference (IBR) of the service information listed
in this paragraph under 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51.
(2) You must use this service information as applicable to do
the actions required by this AD, unless the AD specifies otherwise.
(i) Eurocopter Alert Service Bulletin No. MBB BK117 C-2-65A-003,
dated May 4, 2009.
(ii) Reserved.
(3) For Eurocopter service information identified in this AD,
contact American Eurocopter Corporation, 2701 N. Forum Drive, Grand
Prairie, Texas 75052; telephone (972) 641-0000 or (800) 232-0323;
fax (972) 641-3775; or at http://www.eurocopter.com/techpub.
(4) You may view this service information at FAA, Office of the
Regional Counsel, Southwest Region, 2601 Meacham Blvd., Room 663,
Fort Worth, Texas 76137. For information on the availability of this
material at the FAA, call (817) 222-5110.
(5) You may view this service information that is incorporated
by reference 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.
[[Page 25363]]
Issued in Fort Worth, Texas, on April 12, 2013.
Lance T. Gant,
Acting Directorate Manager, Rotorcraft Directorate, Aircraft
Certification Service.
[FR Doc. 2013-09433 Filed 4-30-13; 8:45 am]
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