DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Aviation Administration
14 CFR Part 39
[Docket No. FAA-2019-0444; Product Identifier 2019-NM-028-AD]
RIN 2120-AA64
Airworthiness Directives; Various Transport Airplanes
AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.
ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).
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SUMMARY: The FAA proposes to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD)
for various transport airplanes. This proposed AD was prompted by
reports of smoke and fumes in the flight deck. This proposed AD would
require modification of certain universal serial bus (USB) receptacles
located in the flight deck. The FAA is proposing this AD to address the
unsafe condition on these products.
DATES: The FAA must receive comments on this proposed AD by August 8, 2019.
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 Fokker
Services B.V., Technical Services Dept., P.O. Box 1357, 2130 EL
Hoofddorp, the Netherlands; telephone +31 (0)88-6280-350; fax +31
(0)88-6280-111; email technicalservices@fokker.com; internet
http://www.myfokkerfleet.com. You may view this service information at the
FAA, Transport Standards Branch, 2200 South 216th St., Des Moines, WA.
For information on the availability of this material at the FAA, call
206-231-3195.
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-2019-
0444; or in person at Docket Operations 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 Docket Operations is listed above.
Comments will be available in the AD docket shortly after receipt.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dan Rodina, Aerospace Engineer,
International Section, Transport Standards Branch, FAA, 2200 South
216th St., Des Moines, WA 98198; telephone and fax 206-231-3225.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Comments Invited
The FAA invites 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-2019-0444;
Product Identifier 2019-NM-028-AD" at the beginning of your comments.
The FAA specifically invites comments on the overall regulatory,
economic, environmental, and energy aspects of this NPRM. The FAA will
consider all comments received by the closing date and may amend this
NPRM because of those comments.
The FAA will post all comments received, without change, to
http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information you provide.
The FAA will also post a report summarizing each substantive verbal
contact the FAA receives about this NPRM.
Discussion
The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), which is the Technical
Agent for the Member States of the European Union, has issued EASA AD
2018-0259R1, dated February 7, 2019 (referred to after this as the
Mandatory Continuing Airworthiness Information, or "the MCAI"), to
correct an unsafe condition for the following airplanes on which
certain USB receptacles were installed using certain Fokker service
information:
Fokker Services B.V. Model F.27 Mark 050 airplanes.
Fokker Services B.V. Model F.28 Mark 3000 airplanes.
Fokker Services B.V. Model F28 Mark 0070 and Mark 0100 airplanes.
Airbus SAS Model A318-111 airplanes.
Airbus SAS Model A319-111, -112, -114, -115, and -132 airplanes.
Airbus SAS Model A320-211, -212, -214, -231, -232, and -251N airplanes.
Airbus SAS Model A321-211, -231, -232, -251N and -253N airplanes.
Airbus SAS Model A330-202, -223, -243, -322 and -343 airplanes.
Airbus SAS Model A340-312 and -313 airplanes.
ATR--GIE Avions de Transport Regional Model ATR42-500 airplanes.
ATR--GIE Avions de Transport Regional Model ATR72-212 and -212A airplanes.
The Boeing Company Model 737-300, -400, -500, -700, -800
and -900ER series airplanes.
The Boeing Company Model 757-200 series airplanes.
The Boeing Company Model 767-200 and -300 series airplanes.
The Boeing Company Model 777-200LR series airplanes.
Bombardier, Inc., Model CL-600-2B16 (601-3A, 601-3R, and
604 Variants) airplanes.
Bombardier, Inc., Model CL-600-2C10 (Regional Jet Series
700, 701 & 702) airplanes.
Bombardier, Inc., Model DHC-8-202, -311, -315 and -402 airplanes.
The MCAI states:
Several occurrences on various aeroplanes have been reported of
smoke and fumes in the cockpit, due to overheating of an Electronic
Flight Bag (EFB) [universal serial bus] USB receptacle, which had
been installed by [Fokker Services] FS Supplemental Type Certificate
(STC), [service bulletin] SB, or minor modification, either an
Engineering Change Request (ECR) or Compliance Record Report (CRR),
as applicable. Investigation results revealed that each of these
events was caused by a short circuit in the EFB charging cable.
This condition, if not corrected, could lead to further events
of smoke/fumes in the cockpit, possibly resulting in excessive
flight crew workload and/or injury to flight deck occupants.
To address this unsafe condition, the USB manufacturer developed
a modification (change to USB receptacle [part number] P/N LS03-
05050-B), and Fokker Services published the applicable SB/EB to
provide those modification instructions, installing current limiting
and overheat protection.
For the reason described above, EASA issued AD 2018-0259 to
require modification of each affected part. That [EASA] AD also
prohibited (re)installation of affected parts.
Since that [EASA] AD was issued, FS issued Revision 2 of EBA320-
0167 and Revision 1 of EBDHC8-0035, redefining the affected
aeroplanes. It was determined that aeroplanes with EBA320-0151
embodied are not affected, as this involves a USB power supply from
another manufacturer. It was also determined that aeroplanes with FS
EBDHC8-0033 embodied (part of EASA STC 10046185) are not affected by
the [EASA] AD, as that mod is a holder-only installation. This
[EASA] AD is revised accordingly.
You may examine the MCAI in the AD docket on the internet at http://www.regulations.gov
by searching for and locating Docket No. FAA-2019-0444.
Related Service Information Under 1 CFR Part 51
Fokker Services B.V. has issued the following service information,
which describes procedures for modifying the electronic flight bag USB
receptacles located in the flight deck, including current limiting and
overheat protection. These documents are distinct since they apply to
different airplane models.
Fokker Services F28 Generic Service Bulletin SBF28-46-002,
Revision 0, dated July 27, 2018.
Fokker Services F50/60 Generic Service Bulletin SBF50-46-
006, Revision 0, dated July 27, 2018.
Fokker Services F100/700 Generic Service Bulletin SBF100-
46-008, Revision 0, dated July 27, 2018.
Fokker Services Engineering Bulletin EBA320-0167, Revision
2, dated December 13, 2018.
Fokker Services Engineering Bulletin EBA330-0011, Revision
0, Sequence 9, dated July 27, 2018.
Fokker Services Engineering Bulletin EBA340-0005, Revision
0, Sequence 8, dated July 27, 2018.
Fokker Services Engineering Bulletin EBAT72-0013, Revision
0, Sequence 7, dated July 27, 2018.
Fokker Services Engineering Bulletin EBB737-0156, Revision
3, dated February 25, 2019.
Fokker Services Engineering Bulletin EBB757-0020, Revision
1, dated October 2, 2018.
Fokker Services Engineering Bulletin EBB767-0023, Revision
1, dated October 3, 2018.
Fokker Services Engineering Bulletin EBB777-0009, Revision
1, dated October 3, 2018.
Fokker Services Engineering Bulletin EBCL60-0010, Revision
1, dated August 30, 2018.
Fokker Services Engineering Bulletin EBDHC8-0035, Revision
1, dated December 13, 2018.
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
This product has been approved by the aviation authority of another
country, and is approved for operation in the United States. Pursuant
to our bilateral agreement with the State of Design Authority, the FAA
has been notified of the unsafe condition described in the MCAI and
service information referenced above. The FAA is proposing this AD
because we evaluated all the relevant information and determined the
unsafe condition described previously is likely to exist or develop on
other products of the same type design.
Proposed Requirements of This NPRM
This proposed AD would require accomplishing the actions specified
in the service information described previously.
Costs of Compliance
The FAA estimates that this proposed AD affects 14 airplanes of
U.S. registry. The FAA estimates the following costs to comply with
this proposed AD:
Estimated Costs for Required Actions
LABOR COST
|
PARTS COST
|
COST PER
PRODUCT
|
COST ON U.S.
OPERATORS
|
3 work-hours x $85 per hour = $255 |
* $0
|
$255
|
$3,570
|
* The FAA has received no definitive data on the parts costs for the required actions.
According to the manufacturer, some or all of the costs of this
proposed AD may be covered under warranty, thereby reducing the cost
impact on affected individuals. The FAA does not control warranty
coverage for affected individuals. As a result, the FAA has included
all known costs in our cost estimate.
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.
The FAA is 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 proposed 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 transport category airplanes and associated appliances to the
Director of the System Oversight 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. Will not affect intrastate aviation in Alaska; and
3. 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
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):
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