DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 39

[Docket No. FAA-2019-0698; Product Identifier 2019-NM-109-AD]
RIN 2120-AA64

Airworthiness Directives; Dassault Aviation Airplanes

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).

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SUMMARY: The FAA proposes to supersede Airworthiness Directive (AD)
2017-19-04 and AD 2014-16-26, which apply to certain Dassault Aviation
Model FALCON 900EX airplanes. Those ADs require revising the existing
maintenance or inspection program, as applicable, to incorporate new or
more restrictive maintenance requirements and/or airworthiness
limitations. Since the FAA issued AD 2017-19-04 and AD 2014-16-26, the
FAA determined that new or more restrictive airworthiness limitations
are necessary. This proposed AD would require revising the existing
maintenance or inspection program, as applicable, to incorporate new or
more restrictive airworthiness limitations. 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 October 31,
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 Dassault
Falcon Jet Corporation, Teterboro Airport, P.O. Box 2000, South
Hackensack, NJ 07606; telephone 201-440-6700; internet http://www.
dassaultfalcon.com. You may view this referenced 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-2019-0698;
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: Tom Rodriguez, Aerospace Engineer,
International Section, Transport Standards Branch, FAA, 2200 South
216th St., Des Moines, WA 98198; telephone and fax 206-231-3226.

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-2019-0698;
Product Identifier 2019-NM-109-AD" at the beginning of your comments.
The FAA specifically invites comments on the overall regulatory,
economic, environmental, and energy aspects of this proposed AD. The
FAA will consider all comments received by the closing date and may
amend this proposed AD based on 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 received about this proposed AD.

Discussion

The FAA issued AD 2017-19-04, Amendment 39-19034 (82 FR 43163,
September 14, 2017) ("AD 2017-19-04"), for certain Dassault Aviation
Model FALCON 900EX airplanes. AD 2017-19-04 requires revising the
existing maintenance or inspection program, as applicable, to
incorporate more restrictive airworthiness limitations. AD 2017-19-04
resulted from a determination that more restrictive airworthiness
limitations or more restrictive maintenance requirements and/or
airworthiness limitations are necessary. The FAA issued AD 2017-19-04
to address reduced structural integrity of the airplane. AD 2017-19-04
specifies that accomplishing the actions required by that AD would
terminate the requirements of AD 2014-16-26, Amendment 39-17950 (79 FR
51077, August 27, 2014) ("AD 2014-16-26"), but it did not supersede
AD 2014-16-26. In addition, AD 2014-16-26 specifies that accomplishing
paragraph (g) of that AD would terminate the requirements of paragraph
(g)(1) of AD 2010-26-05, Amendment 39-16544 (75 FR 79952, December 21,
2010); for Dassault Aviation Model FALCON 900EX airplanes, serial
numbers 1 through 96 inclusive, and serial numbers 98 through 119
inclusive. This terminating provision of certain requirements of AD
2010-26-05 is included in this proposed AD.

This AD proposes to supersede AD 2017-19-04 and AD 2014-16-26, but
does not propose to supersede AD 2010-26-05.

Actions Since AD 2017-19-04 and AD 2014-16-26 Were Issued

Since AD 2017-19-04 and AD 2014-16-26 were issued, the FAA has
determined that new or more restrictive airworthiness limitations are
necessary.

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), which is the
Technical Agent for the Member States of the European Union, has issued
EASA AD 2019-0133, dated June 11, 2019 (referred to after this as the
Mandatory Continuing Airworthiness Information, or "the MCAI"), to
correct an unsafe condition for certain Dassault Aviation Model FALCON
900EX airplanes. The MCAI states:

The airworthiness limitations for Falcon 900EX aeroplanes, which
are approved by EASA, are currently defined and published in
Dassault Falcon 900EX AMM [Airplane Maintenance Manual], Chapter 5-
40. These instructions have been identified as mandatory for
continued airworthiness.

Failure to accomplish these instructions could result in an
unsafe condition.

EASA previously issued AD 2016-0128 (which corresponds to FAA AD
2017-19-04), requiring the actions described in Dassault Falcon
900EX AMM Chapter 5-40 (DGT113874) at Revision 14.

Since that [EASA] AD was issued, Dassault published Revisions 15
and 16 of Dassault Falcon 900EX AMM Chapter 5-40 (DGT113874).
Revision 16 contains new and/or more restrictive maintenance tasks.

For the reason described above, this [EASA] AD retains the
requirements of EASA AD 2016-0128, which is superseded, and requires
accomplishment of the actions specified in the ALS [airworthiness
limitations section], as defined in this [EASA] AD.

You may examine the MCAI in the AD docket on the internet at http://www.
regulations.gov by searching for and locating FAA-2019-0698.

Related Service Information Under 1 CFR Part 51

Dassault Aviation has issued Chapter 5-40, Airworthiness
Limitations, Revision 16, dated September 2018, of the Dassault FALCON
900EX Maintenance Manual. This service information describes
procedures, maintenance tasks, and airworthiness limitations specified
in the Airworthiness Limitations section of the AMM.

This proposed AD would also require Chapter 5-40, Airworthiness
Limitations, Revision 14, dated November 2015, of the FALCON 900EX
Maintenance Manual, which the Director of the Federal Register approved
for incorporation by reference as of October 19, 2017 (82 FR 43163,
September 14, 2017).

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 a 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 the agency 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 retain all requirements of AD 2017-19-04.
This proposed AD would require revising the existing maintenance or
inspection program, as applicable, to incorporate new or more
restrictive airworthiness limitations. This proposed AD would also
retain the terminating provisions of AD 2014-16-26, related to AD 2010-
26-05.

This proposed AD would require revisions to certain operator
maintenance documents to include new actions (e.g., inspections).
Compliance with these actions is required by 14 CFR 91.403(c). For
airplanes that have been previously modified, altered, or repaired in
the areas addressed by this proposed AD, the operator may not be able
to accomplish the actions described in the revisions. In this
situation, to comply with 14 CFR 91.403(c), the operator must request
approval for an alternative method of compliance according to paragraph
(l)(1) of this proposed AD.

Costs of Compliance

The FAA estimates that this proposed AD affects 100 airplanes of
U.S. registry.

The FAA estimates the following costs to comply with this proposed
AD:

The FAA estimates the total cost per operator for the retained
actions from AD 2017-19-04 to be $7,650 (90 work-hours x $85 per work-
hour).

The FAA has determined that revising the existing maintenance or
inspection program takes an average of 90 work-hours per operator,
although the agency recognizes that this number may vary from operator
to operator. In the past, the FAA has estimated that this action takes
1 work-hour per airplane. Since operators incorporate maintenance or
inspection program changes for their affected fleet(s), the FAA has
determined that a per-operator estimate is more accurate than a per-
airplane estimate. Therefore, the FAA estimates the total cost per
operator for the new proposed actions to be $7,650 (90 work-hours x $85
per work-hour).

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

The FAA 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

a. Removing Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2014-16-26, Amendment 39-17950
(79 FR 51077, August 27, 2014); and AD 2017-19-04, Amendment 39-19034
(82 FR 43163, September 14, 2017); and

b. Adding the following new AD: