AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Department of
Transportation (DOT).

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: We are adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain
Bombardier, Inc. Model CL-600-2C10 (Regional Jet Series 700, 701, &
702) airplanes, Model CL-600-2D15 (Regional Jet Series 705) airplanes,
Model CL-600-2D24 (Regional Jet Series 900) airplanes, and Model CL-
600-2E25 (Regional Jet Series 1000) airplanes. This AD was prompted by
two in-service reports of fracture of the rudder pedal tubes installed
on the pilot-side rudder bar assembly. This AD requires repetitive
inspections for cracking and damage of the pilot-side rudder pedal
tubes, and corrective action if necessary. This AD also provides
optional terminating action for the repetitive inspections. We are
issuing this AD to detect and correct cracked and damaged pilot-side
rudder pedal tubes, which could result in loss of function of the
pilot's rudder pedal during flight, takeoff, or landing, and could
result in reduced controllability of the airplane.

DATES: This AD becomes effective September 5, 2014.
The Director of the Federal Register approved the incorporation by
reference of a certain publication listed in this AD as of September 5, 2014.

ADDRESSES: You may examine the AD docket on the Internet at http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=FAA-2014-0196 or in person at the
Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of Transportation, Docket
Operations, M-30, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New
Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC.
For service information identified in this AD, contact Bombardier,
Inc., 400 C[ocirc]te-Vertu Road West, Dorval, Qu[eacute]bec H4S 1Y9,
Canada; telephone 514-855-5000; fax 514-855-7401; email
thd.crj@aero.bombardier.com; Internet http://www.bombardier.com. You
may view this referenced service information at the FAA, Transport
Airplane Directorate, 1601 Lind Avenue SW., Renton, WA. For information
on the availability of this material at the FAA, call 425-227-1221.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cesar Gomez, Aerospace Engineer,
Airframe and Mechanical Systems Branch, ANE-171, FAA, New York Aircraft
Certification Office, 1600 Stewart Avenue, Suite 410, Westbury, NY
11590; telephone 516-228-7318; fax 516-794-5531.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Discussion

We issued a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to amend 14 CFR
part 39 by adding an AD that would apply to certain Bombardier, Inc.
Model CL-600-2C10 (Regional Jet Series 700, 701, & 702) airplanes,
Model CL-600-2D15 (Regional Jet Series 705) airplanes, Model CL-600-
2D24 (Regional Jet Series 900) airplanes, and Model CL-600-2E25
(Regional Jet Series 1000) airplanes. The NPRM published in the Federal
Register on April 14, 2014 (79 FR 20829).
Transport Canada Civil Aviation (TCCA), which is the airworthiness
authority for Canada, has issued Canadian Airworthiness Directive CF-
2014-02, dated January 8, 2014 (referred to after this as the Mandatory
Continuing Airworthiness Information, or ``the MCAI''). The MCAI
states:

There have been two in-service reports of fracture of the rudder
pedal tubes installed on the pilot-side rudder bar assembly on CL-
600-2B19 model aeroplanes.
Laboratory examination of the fractured rudder pedal tubes found
that in both cases, the fatigue cracks initiated at the aft taper
pin holes where the connecting rod fitting is attached. Fatigue
testing of the rudder pedal tubes confirmed that the fatigue
cracking is due to loads induced during parking brake application.
Therefore, only the rudder pedal tubes on the pilot's side are
vulnerable to fatigue cracking as the parking brake is primarily
applied by the pilot.
Loss of pilot rudder pedal input during flight would result in
reduced yaw controllability of the aeroplane. Loss of pilot rudder
pedal input during takeoff or landing may lead to a runway
excursion.
Although there have been no reported failures to date on any CL-
600-2C10, -2D15, -2D24, and -2D25 model aeroplanes, the same torque
tubes part number (P/N) 600-90204-3 are installed, which may be
prone to premature fatigue cracking.
This [Canadian] AD mandates initial and repetitive [detailed and
eddy current] inspections [for cracking and damage] of the pilot-
side rudder pedal tubes, P/N 600-90204-3, until the terminating
action [replacement of both pilot-side rudder bar assemblies] is
accomplished [and corrective actions if necessary].

Corrective actions include replacement of the rudder bar assembly and
repair. You may examine the MCAI in the AD docket on the Internet at
http://www.regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=FAA-2014-0196-0002.

Comments

We gave the public the opportunity to participate in developing
this AD. We received no comments on the NPRM (79 FR 20829, April 14,
2014) or on the determination of the cost to the public.

"Contacting the Manufacturer" Paragraph in This AD

Since late 2006, we have included a standard paragraph titled
``Airworthy Product'' in all MCAI ADs in which the FAA develops an AD
based on a foreign authority's AD.
The MCAI or referenced service information in an FAA AD often
directs the owner/operator to contact the manufacturer for corrective
actions, such as a repair. Briefly, the Airworthy Product paragraph
allowed owners/operators to use corrective actions provided by the
manufacturer if those actions were FAA-approved. In addition, the
paragraph stated that any actions approved by the State of Design
Authority (or its delegated agent) are considered to be FAA-approved.
In the NPRM (79 FR 20829, April 14, 2014), we proposed to prevent
the use of repairs that were not specifically developed to correct the
unsafe condition, by requiring that the repair approval provided by the
State of Design Authority or its delegated agent specifically refer to
this FAA AD. This change was intended to clarify the method of
compliance and to provide operators with better visibility of repairs
that are specifically developed and approved to correct the unsafe
condition. In addition, we proposed to change the phrase ``its
delegated agent'' to include a design approval holder (DAH) with State
of Design Authority design organization approval (DOA), as applicable,
to refer to a DAH authorized to approve required repairs for the
proposed AD.
No comments were provided to the NPRM (79 FR 20829, April 14, 2014)
about these proposed changes. However, a comment was provided for a
similar NPRM, Directorate Identifier 2012-NM-101-AD (78 FR 78285,
December 26, 2013). The commenter stated the following: ``The proposed
wording, being specific to repairs, eliminates the interpretation that
Airbus messages are acceptable for approving minor deviations
(corrective actions) needed during accomplishment of an AD mandated
Airbus service bulletin.''
This comment has made the FAA aware that some operators have
misunderstood or misinterpreted the Airworthy Product paragraph to
allow the owner/operator to use messages provided by the manufacturer
as approval of deviations during the accomplishment of an AD-mandated
action. The Airworthy Product paragraph does not approve messages or
other information provided by the manufacturer for deviations to the
requirements of the AD-mandated actions. The Airworthy Product
paragraph only addresses the requirement to contact the manufacturer
for corrective actions for the identified unsafe condition and does not
cover deviations from other AD requirements. However, deviations to AD-
required actions are addressed in 14 CFR 39.17, and anyone may request
the approval for an alternative method of compliance to the AD-required
actions using the procedures found in 14 CFR 39.19.
To address this misunderstanding and misinterpretation of the
Airworthy Product paragraph, we have changed that paragraph and
retitled it ``Contacting the Manufacturer.'' This paragraph now
clarifies that for any requirement in this AD to obtain corrective
actions from a manufacturer, the action must be accomplished using a
method approved by the FAA, TCCA, or Bombardier, Inc.'s TCCA Design
Approval Organization (DAO).
The Contacting the Manufacturer paragraph also clarifies that, if
approved by the DAO, the approval must include the DAO-authorized
signature. The DAO signature indicates that the data and information
contained in the document are TCCA-approved, which is also FAA-
approved. Messages and other information provided by the manufacturer
that do not contain the DAO-authorized signature approval are
not TCCA-approved, unless TCCA directly approves the manufacturer's
message or other information.
This clarification does not remove flexibility previously afforded
by the Airworthy Product paragraph. Consistent with long-standing FAA
policy, such flexibility was never intended for required actions. This
is also consistent with the recommendation of the Airworthiness
Directive Implementation Aviation Rulemaking Committee to increase
flexibility in complying with ADs by identifying those actions in
manufacturers' service instructions that are ``Required for
Compliance'' with ADs. We continue to work with manufacturers to
implement this recommendation. But once we determine that an action is
required, any deviation from the requirement must be approved as an
alternative method of compliance.
Other commenters to the NPRM discussed previously, Directorate
Identifier 2012-NM-101-AD (78 FR 78285, December 26, 2013), pointed out
that in many cases the foreign manufacturer's service bulletin and the
foreign authority's MCAI might have been issued some time before the
FAA AD. Therefore, the DOA might have provided U.S. operators with an
approved repair, developed with full awareness of the unsafe condition,
before the FAA AD is issued. Under these circumstances, to comply with
the FAA AD, the operator would be required to go back to the
manufacturer's DOA and obtain a new approval document, adding time and
expense to the compliance process with no safety benefit.
Based on these comments, we removed the requirement that the DAH-
provided repair specifically refer to this AD. Before adopting such a
requirement, the FAA will coordinate with affected DAHs and verify they
are prepared to implement means to ensure that their repair approvals
consider the unsafe condition addressed in this AD. Any such
requirements will be adopted through the normal AD rulemaking process,
including notice-and-comment procedures, when appropriate.
We also have decided not to include a generic reference to either
the ``delegated agent'' or ``DAH with State of Design Authority design
organization approval,'' but instead we have provided the specific
delegation approval granted by the State of Design Authority for the
DAH throughout this AD.

Conclusion

We reviewed the relevant data and determined that air safety and
the public interest require adopting this AD with the changes described
previously and minor editorial changes. We have determined that these
minor changes:
Are consistent with the intent that was proposed in the
NPRM (79 FR 20829, April 14, 2014) for correcting the unsafe condition;
and
Do not add any additional burden upon the public than was
already proposed in the NPRM (79 FR 20829, April 14, 2014).
We also determined that these changes will not increase the
economic burden on any operator or increase the scope of this AD.

Costs of Compliance

We estimate that this AD affects 400 airplanes of U.S. registry.
We also estimate that it takes about 3 work-hours per product to
comply with the basic inspection requirements of this AD. The average
labor rate is $85 per work-hour. Based on these figures, we estimate
the cost of this AD on U.S. operators to be $102,000, or $255 per
airplane, per inspection cycle.
In addition, we estimate that any necessary replacement of the
rudder pedal tubes takes about 6 work-hours and require parts costing
$2,850, for a cost of $3,360 per product. We have no way of determining
the number of aircraft that might need this action.
We have received no definitive data that would enable us to provide
cost estimates for the on-condition repairs specified in this AD.

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 that 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);
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.

Examining the AD Docket

You may examine the AD docket on the Internet at http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=FAA-2014-0196; 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 AD, the
regulatory evaluation, any comments received, and other information.
The street address for the Docket Operations office (telephone 800-647-
5527) is in the ADDRESSES section.

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:

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

Sec. 39.13 [Amended]

2. The FAA amends Sec. 39.13 by adding the following new airworthiness
directive (AD):