DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 39

[Docket No. FAA-2021-0340; Project Identifier MCAI-2020-01638-R]
RIN 2120-AA64

Airworthiness Directives; Airbus Helicopters (Type Certificate
Previously Held by Eurocopter France) 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)
2003-25-01 which applies to certain Eurocopter France (now Airbus
Helicopters) Models AS332C, AS332C1, AS332L, AS332L1, AS350B, AS350BA,
AS350B1, AS350B2, AS350B3, AS350D, AS355E, AS355F, AS355F1, AS355F2,
and AS355N helicopters. AD 2003-25-01 requires modifying and re-
identifying the hoist operator control unit and replacing certain
fuses. Since the FAA issued AD 2003-25-01, Airbus Helicopters has
identified multiple errors in the applicable service information for
the AS350-series and AS355-series helicopters. This proposed AD would
retain certain requirements of AD 2003-25-01, revise the applicability,
and propose to require using the corrected service information. This
proposed AD would also require reporting certain information and
prohibit the installation of an affected hoist until the required
actions are accomplished. 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 June 14,
2021.

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 service information identified in this NPRM, contact Airbus
Helicopters, 2701 N Forum Drive, Grand Prairie, TX 75052; telephone
(972) 641-0000 or (800) 232-0323; fax (972) 641-3775; or at https://www.
airbus.com/helicopters/services/technical-support.html. You may
view this service information 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.

Examining the AD Docket

You may examine the AD docket at https://www.regulations.gov by
searching for and locating Docket No. FAA-2021-0340; 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
Direction Generale De L'Aviation Civile (DGAC) AD, the European Union
Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) AD, any comments received, and other
information. The street address for Docket Operations is listed above.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Hal Jensen, Aerospace Engineer,
Operational Safety Branch, Compliance & Airworthiness Division, FAA,
950 L'Enfant Plaza N SW, Washington, DC 20024; telephone (202) 267-
9167; email hal.jensen@faa.gov.

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 ADDRESSES. Include "Docket No. FAA-2021-0340; Project Identifier
MCAI-2020-01638-R" at the beginning of your comments. The most helpful
comments reference a specific portion of the proposal, explain the
reason for any recommended change, and include supporting data. The FAA
will consider all comments received by the closing date and may amend
this proposal because of those 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, to
https://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information you
provide. The agency will also post a report summarizing each
substantive verbal contact received about this NPRM.

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 Hal
Jensen, Aerospace Engineer, Operational Safety Branch, Compliance &
Airworthiness Division, FAA, 950 L'Enfant Plaza N SW, Washington, DC
20024; telephone (202) 267-9167; email hal.jensen@faa.gov. Any
commentary that the FAA receives which is not specifically designated
as CBI will be placed in the public docket for this rulemaking.

Background

The FAA issued AD 2003-25-01, Amendment 39-13384 (68 FR 69596,
December 15, 2003) (AD 2003-25-01), for Eurocopter France (now Airbus
Helicopters) Model AS332C, C1, L, and L1, AS350B, BA, B1, B2, B3, and
D, and AS355E, F, F1, F2, and N helicopters with a Breeze 300 pound
electric hoist (hoist) and hoist operator control unit 26M part number
(P/N) 350A63-1136-00 or 350A63-1136-01, and hoist electric box 91M P/N
332A67-2875-00, installed. AD 2003-25-01 requires modifying and re-
identifying the hoist operator control unit, replacing the fuses, and
functionally testing the hoist operation and emergency jettison controls.
AD 2003-25-01 was prompted by French AD 2002-584(A) and 2002-585(A), each
dated November 27, 2002 (AD 2002-584(A) and AD 2002-585(A)), issued by
DGAC, which is the aviation authority for France. AD 2002-584(A) corrects
an unsafe condition for Eurocopter France Model AS332C, C1, L, and L1
helicopters with a certain hoist and hoist box installed. AD 2002-
585(A) corrected an unsafe condition for Eurocopter France Model
AS350B, BA, BB, B1, B2, B3, and D, and AS355E, F, F1, F2, and N
helicopters with a certain hoist and hoist box installed and without a
certain modification (MOD) installed. DGAC advised of the discovery of
a failure of a rescue hoist emergency release control system to operate
due to an anomaly in the electrical control circuit. This condition, if
not addressed, could result in an inability of the pilot to cut the
rescue hoist cable in the event of cable entanglement or other
emergency, and subsequent loss of control of the helicopter.

Accordingly, AD 2002-584(A) requires compliance with Eurocopter
Alert Service Bulletin (ASB) No. 25.01.18, dated November 12, 2002, to
install MOD 332PCS 78 288. AD 2002-585(A) required compliance with
Eurocopter ASB No. 25.00.71 or 25.00.79, each dated November 12, 2002,
as applicable to your model helicopter, to install MOD 07 3190.

Actions Since AD 2003-25-01 Was Issued

Since the FAA issued AD 2003-25-01, EASA, which is the Technical
Agent for the Member States of the European Union, issued EASA AD 2019-
0228, dated September 12, 2019 (EASA AD 2019-0228) to supersede DGAC AD
2002-585(A). EASA AD 2019-0228 corrects an unsafe condition for Airbus
Helicopters (AH), formerly Eurocopter, Eurocopter France, Aerospatiale
Model AS 350 B, AS 350 BA, AS 350 BB, AS 350 B1, AS 350 B2, AS 350 B3,
AS 350 D, AS 355 E, AS 355 F, AS 355 F1, AS 355 F2, and AS 355 N
helicopters. EASA advises that Airbus Helicopters identified
translation errors in the service information required for compliance
by DGAC AD 2002-585(A). Airbus Helicopters was also informed that there
could be helicopters modified by that service information with
incorrect installations. Prompted by these findings, Airbus Helicopters
revised the related service information. Therefore, EASA issued EASA AD
2019-0228 to accomplish the MOD as intended by DGAC AD 2002-585(A) with
the revised service information. EASA AD 2019-0228 also requires
reporting certain information to Airbus Helicopters and prohibits the
installation of an affected part on any helicopter unless it has been
modified.

Since the FAA issued AD 2003-25-01, the FAA discovered that the
applicability needed to be revised. This NPRM revises the applicability
by distinguishing the hoist box installations by P/N, clarifying that
Airbus Helicopters service information refers to a hoist box as a hoist
operator's control unit, adding TRW, Lucas, and Air Equipement hoists
for affected Model AS350-series and AS355-series helicopters, and
adding an exception for affected helicopters to exclude those with a
certain MOD installed.

Lastly, since the FAA issued AD 2003-25-01, Eurocopter France
changed its name to Airbus Helicopters. This AD reflects that change
and updates the contact information to obtain service documentation.

FAA's Determination

These helicopters have been approved by both the authority of
France and EASA and are approved for operation in the United States.
Pursuant to the FAA's bilateral agreement with the European Union, DGAC
and EASA have notified the FAA about the unsafe condition described in
their ADs. The FAA is proposing this AD after evaluating all known
relevant information and determining that the unsafe condition
described previously is likely to exist or develop on other helicopters
of these same type designs.

Related Service Information Under 1 CFR Part 51

The FAA reviewed Airbus Helicopters ASB No. 25.00.71, Revision 2,
dated May 14, 2019 (ASB 25.00.71 Rev 2), Airbus Helicopters ASB No.
25.00.79, Revision 3, dated September 24, 2019 (ASB 25.00.79 Rev 3),
and Eurocopter ASB No. 25.01.18, dated November 12, 2002 (ASB
25.01.18). ASB 25.00.71 Rev 2 applies to Model AS355-series
helicopters, ASB 25.00.79 Rev 3 applies to Model AS350-series
helicopters, and ASB 25.01.18 applies AS332-series helicopters.

ASB 25.00.71 Rev 2 and ASB 25.00.79 Rev 3 specify procedures to
install MOD 07 3190, which consists of eliminating resistor 27M in the
hoist operator's control unit 26M and replacing the 2.5A quick-response
fuses on the Honeywell unit at 30 alpha or 21 delta for Model AS350-
series helicopters or on the distribution panel 10 alpha for Model 355-
series helicopters. ASB 25.00.71 Rev 2 and ASB 25.00.79 Rev 3 also
specify reporting certain information to Airbus Helicopters. ASB
25.01.18 specifies procedures to install MOD 332PCS 78 288, which
consists of eliminating resistor 81M in hoist box 91M and re-
identifying the hoist box as 332P67-2894-01, -02, -03, or -04,
depending on which electrical wiring assembly is installed in the
helicopter.

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.

Other Related Service Information

The FAA also reviewed Airbus Helicopters ASB No. 25.00.71, Revision
1, dated May 21, 2014 (ASB 25.00.71 Rev 1), and ASB No. 25.00.79,
Revision 1, dated May 21, 2014 (ASB 25.00.79 Rev 1) and Revision 2 (ASB
25.00.79 Rev 2), dated May 14, 2019.

ASB 25.00.71 Rev 1 specifies the same actions as ASB 25.00.71 Rev
2, except ASB 25.00.71 Rev 2 provides a reminder that MOD 07 3190 is
mandatory and adds a reporting response form. ASB 25.00.79 Rev 1 and
ASB 25.00.79 Rev 2 specify the same actions as ASB 25.00.79 Rev 3,
except ASB 25.00.79 Rev 2 provides a reminder that MOD 07 3190 is
mandatory and adds a reporting response form and ASB 25.00.79 Rev 3
adds Model AS350L1 to the effectivity.

Proposed AD Requirements in This NPRM

This proposed AD would retain certain requirements of AD 2003-25-
01. This proposed AD would continue to require modifying and re-
identifying the hoist operator control unit, replacing the fuses, and
functionally testing the hoist operation and emergency jettison
controls; however, this proposed AD would require accomplishing those
actions by following revised service information for affected Model
AS350-series and AS355-series helicopters. For affected Model AS350-
series and AS355-series helicopters, this proposed AD would also
require sending certain information to the Technical Support Department
of Airbus Helicopters. Lastly, this proposed AD would prohibit
installing an affected hoist unless the proposed actions are
accomplished.

Differences Between This Proposed AD and the EASA AD

EASA AD 2019-0228 applies to Model AS350BB helicopters, whereas
this proposed AD would not because that model is not FAA type-
certificated. EASA AD 2019-0228 requires
modifying affected parts within 100 flight hours or 2 months, whichever
occurs first, whereas this proposed AD would require those actions
before next flight involving a hoist operation for Model AS350-series
and AS355-series helicopters instead.

Costs of Compliance

The FAA estimates that this AD affects up to 977 helicopters of
U.S. Registry. Labor rates are estimated at $85 per work-hour. Based on
these numbers, the FAA estimates that operators may incur the following
costs in order to comply with this proposed AD.

Modifying and re-identifying the hoist operator control unit,
replacing the fuses, and functionally testing the hoist operation and
the emergency jettison controls would take about 4 work hours and parts
would cost about $20 for an estimated cost of $360 per helicopter and
up to $351,720 for the U.S. fleet.

For Model AS350-series and AS355-series helicopters, reporting
information would take about 1 work-hour for an estimated cost of $85
per helicopter and up to $82,195 for the U.S. fleet.

Paperwork Reduction Act

A federal agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not
required to respond to, nor shall a person be subject to penalty for
failure to comply with a collection of information subject to the
requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act unless that collection of
information displays a currently valid OMB Control Number. The OMB
Control Number for this information collection is 2120-0056. Public
reporting for this collection of information is estimated to be
approximately 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing
instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and
maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the
collection of information. All responses to this collection of
information are mandatory. Send comments regarding this burden estimate
or any other aspect of this collection of information, including
suggestions for reducing this burden, to: Information Collection
Clearance Officer, Federal Aviation Administration, 10101 Hillwood
Parkway, Fort Worth, TX 76177-1524.

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, I certify this proposed regulation:

(1) Is not a "significant regulatory action" under Executive
Order 12866,

(2) Would not affect intrastate aviation in Alaska, and

(3) Would 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 2003-25-01, Amendment 39-13384 (68
FR 69596, December 15, 2003); and

b. Adding the following new airworthiness directive: