DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 39

[Docket No. FAA-2020-0983; Project Identifier MCAI-2020-00542-R]
RIN 2120-AA64

Airworthiness Directives; Airbus Helicopters

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)
2018-05-09, which applies to all Airbus Helicopters Model AS332C,
AS332C1, AS332L, and AS332L1 helicopters. AD 2018-05-09 requires
inspecting the tail rotor (T/R) flapping hinge link (hinge) and
reporting the results. Since the FAA issued AD 2018-05-09, the FAA has
determined that repetitive inspections of the spindle bolts and the
inner ring and needle bearings of each flapping hinge and repetitive
replacements of affected flapping hinge components must be done in
order to address the unsafe condition. Replacement of all affected
flapping hinge components on each flapping hinge is terminating action
for the repetitive inspections. This proposed AD would require
repetitive inspections of the spindle bolts and the inner ring and
needle bearings of each flapping hinge, corrective actions if
necessary, and repetitive replacements of affected flapping hinge
components, as specified in a European Union Aviation Safety Agency
(EASA) AD, which will be incorporated by reference. This proposed AD
would also expand the applicability. 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 December
21, 2020.

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 https://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 material incorporated by reference (IBR) in this AD, contact
the EASA, Konrad-Adenauer-Ufer 3, 50668 Cologne, Germany; telephone +49
221 89990 1000; email ADs@easa.europa.eu; internet www.easa.europa.eu.
You may find this IBR material on the EASA website at https://ad.easa.
europa.eu. You may view this IBR material at the FAA, Office of
the Regional Counsel, Southwest Region, 10101 Hillwood Pkwy, Room 6N-
321, Fort Worth, TX 76177. For information on the availability of this
material at the FAA, call 817-222-5110. It is also available in the AD
docket on the internet at https://www.regulations.gov by searching for
and locating Docket No. FAA-2020-0983.

Examining the AD Docket

You may examine the AD docket on the internet at https://www.regulations.
gov by searching for and locating Docket No. FAA-2020-0983;
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, 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: Daniel E. Moore, Aviation Safety
Engineer, Regulations & Policy Section, Rotorcraft Standards Branch,
FAA, 10101 Hillwood Pkwy., Fort Worth, TX 76177; telephone 817-222-
5110; email daniel.e.moore@faa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Comments Invited

The FAA invites you to participate in this rulemaking by submitting
written comments, data, or views about this proposal. The most helpful
comments reference a specific portion of the proposal, explain the
reason for any recommended change, and include supporting data. To
ensure the docket does not contain duplicate comments, commenters
should submit only one copy of the comments. Send your comments to an
address listed under the ADDRESSES section. Include "Docket No. FAA
2020-0983; Project Identifier MCAI-2020-00542-R" at the beginning of
your comments.

Except for Confidential Business Information (CBI) as described in
the following paragraph, and other information as described in 14 CFR
11.35, the FAA will post all comments received, without change, as well
as a report summarizing each substantive public contact with FAA
personnel concerning this proposed rulemaking. Before acting on this
proposal, the FAA will consider all comments received by the closing
date for comments. The FAA will consider comments filed after the
comment period has closed if it is possible to do so without incurring
expense or delay. The FAA may change this NPRM because of those
comments.

Confidential Business Information

CBI is commercial or financial information that is both customarily
and actually treated as private by its owner. Under the Freedom of
Information Act (FOIA) (5 U.S.C. 552), CBI is exempt from public
disclosure. If your comments responsive to this NPRM contain commercial
or financial information that is customarily treated as private, that
you actually treat as private, and that is relevant or responsive to
this NPRM, it is important that you clearly designate the submitted
comments as CBI. Please mark each page of your submission containing
CBI as "PROPIN." The FAA will treat such marked submissions as
confidential under the FOIA, and they will not be placed in the public
docket of this NPRM. Submissions containing CBI should be sent to
Daniel E. Moore, Aviation Safety Engineer, Regulations & Policy
Section, Rotorcraft Standards Branch, FAA, 10101 Hillwood Pkwy., Fort
Worth, TX 76177; telephone 817-222-5110; email daniel.e.moore@faa.gov.
Any commentary that the FAA receives that is not specifically
designated as CBI will be placed in the public docket for this
rulemaking.

Discussion

The FAA issued AD 2018-05-09, Amendment 39-19218 (83 FR 10360,
March 9, 2018) (AD 2018-05-09), which applies to all Airbus Helicopters
Model AS332C, AS332C1, AS332L, and AS332L1 helicopters. AD 2018-05-09
requires inspecting the T/R flapping hinge and reporting the results.
The FAA issued AD 2018-05-09 to address failure of a T/R flapping
hinge. This condition could result in unbalance of the T/R, detachment
of the T/R gearbox and hub, and subsequent loss of control of the
helicopter.

Actions Since AD 2018-05-09 Was Issued

Since the FAA issued AD 2018-05-09, the FAA has determined
repetitive inspections of the spindle bolts and the inner ring and
needle bearings of each flapping hinge and repetitive replacements of
affected flapping hinge components must be done in order to address the
unsafe condition. Replacement of all affected flapping hinge components
on each flapping hinge is terminating action for the repetitive
inspections of the spindle bolts and the inner ring and needle bearings
of each flapping hinge. In addition, the applicability has been
expanded to include Model SA330J helicopters.

The EASA, which is the Technical Agent for the Member States of the
European Union, has issued EASA AD 2020-0086, dated April 14, 2020
(EASA AD 2020-0086) (also referred to as the Mandatory Continuing
Airworthiness Information, or the MCAI), to correct an unsafe condition
for all Airbus Helicopters Model AS332C, AS332C1, AS332L, AS332L1, and
SA330J helicopters.

This proposed AD was prompted by a report of a damaged flapping
hinge on a T/R blade. The FAA is proposing this AD to address failure
of a T/R flapping hinge. This condition could result in unbalance of
the T/R, detachment of the T/R gearbox and hub, and subsequent loss of
control of the helicopter. See the MCAI for additional background
information.

Related Service Information Under 1 CFR Part 51

EASA AD 2020-0086 describes procedures for repetitive replacement
of the flapping hinge components and repetitive inspections of the
spindle bolts, inner ring, and needle bearings of each flapping hinge,
and corrective action. The inspection procedures include repetitive
inspections of the spindle bolts for cracking; repetitive inspections
of the inner ring for spalling, brinelling, and cracking; and
repetitive inspections of the needle bearings for spalling. The
corrective actions include replacement of any affected component with a
serviceable part. This material 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 and Requirements of This Proposed AD

This product has been approved by the aviation authority of another
country, and is approved for operation in the United States. Pursuant
to the bilateral agreement with the State of Design Authority, the FAA
has been notified of the unsafe condition described in the MCAI
referenced above. The FAA is proposing this AD because the FAA
evaluated all the relevant information and determined the unsafe
condition described previously is likely to exist or develop in other
products of the same type design.

Proposed AD Requirements

This proposed AD would require accomplishing the actions specified
in EASA AD 2020-0086 described previously, as incorporated by
reference, except for any differences identified as exceptions in the
regulatory text of this AD and except as discussed under "Differences
Between this Proposed AD and the MCAI."

Explanation of Required Compliance Information

In the FAA's ongoing efforts to improve the efficiency of the AD
process, the FAA initially worked with Airbus and EASA to develop a
process to use certain EASA ADs as the primary source of information
for compliance with requirements for corresponding FAA ADs. The FAA has
since coordinated with other manufacturers and civil aviation
authorities (CAAs) to use this process. As a result, EASA AD 2020-0086
will be incorporated by reference in the FAA final rule. This proposed
AD would, therefore, require compliance with EASA AD 2020-0086 in its
entirety, through that incorporation, except for any differences
identified as exceptions in the regulatory text of this proposed AD.
Using common terms that are the same as the heading of a particular
section in the EASA AD does not mean that operators need comply only
with that section. For example, where the AD requirement refers to
"all required actions and compliance times," compliance with this AD
requirement is not limited to the section titled "Required Action(s)
and Compliance Time(s)" in the EASA AD. Service information specified
in EASA AD 2020-0086 that is required for compliance with EASA AD 2020-
0086 will be available on the internet at https://www.regulations.gov
by searching for and locating Docket No. FAA-2020-0983 after the FAA
final rule is published.

Differences Between This Proposed AD and the MCAI

Although the service information referenced in EASA AD 2020-0086
specifies to return affected parts and submit a form to the
manufacturer, this proposed AD does not include those requirements.

Where paragraph (1) of EASA AD 2020-0086 refers to a compliance
time of "within 25 flight hours or during the next scheduled 50 FH
inspection, whichever occurs later . . . ," for the initial
replacement, this proposed AD requires completion within 25 hours time-
in-service after the effective date of this proposed AD.

Costs of Compliance

The FAA estimates that this proposed AD affects 26 helicopters of
U.S. registry. The FAA estimates the following costs to comply with
this proposed AD:

Estimated Costs for Required Actions

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.

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 removing Airworthiness Directive (AD)
2018-05-09, Amendment 39-19218 (83 FR 10360, March 9, 2018), and adding
the following new AD: