DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 39

[Docket No. FAA-2021-0572; Project Identifier MCAI-2021-00391-R]
RIN 2120-AA64

Airworthiness Directives; Leonardo S.p.a. Helicopters

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 all Leonardo S.p.a. Model A119 and AW119 MKII helicopters. This
proposed AD was prompted by reports of abnormal play on the collective
torque tube on two Model AW119 MKII helicopters. This proposed AD would
require repetitive inspections of affected torque tube assemblies for
any deficiency and corrective action if necessary; and the replacement
of any affected part with a serviceable part, which is terminating
action for the repetitive inspections, as specified in a European Union
Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) AD, which is proposed for incorporation
by reference (IBR). 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 September
3, 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 EASA material that is proposed for IBR in this AD, contact
EASA, Konrad-Adenauer-Ufer 3, 50668 Cologne, Germany; telephone +49 221
8999 000; 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 the EASA 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 the EASA material at the
FAA, call (817) 222-5110. EASA material is also available at https://www.
regulations.gov by searching for and locating Docket No. FAA-2021-0572.

Examining the AD Docket

You may examine the AD docket at https://www.regulations.gov by
searching for and locating Docket No. FAA-2021-0572; 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 EASA AD,
any comments received, and other information. The street address for
Docket Operations is listed above.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Andrea Jimenez, Aerospace Engineer,
COS Program Management Section, Operational Safety Branch, Compliance &
Airworthiness Division, FAA, 1600 Stewart Ave., Mail Stop: Room 410,
Westbury, NY 11590; telephone (516) 228-7330; email
andrea.jimenez@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-2021-0572; Project Identifier
MCAI-2021-00391-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
Andrea Jimenez, Aerospace Engineer, COS Program Management Section,
Operational Safety Branch, Compliance & Airworthiness Division, FAA,
1600 Stewart Ave., Mail Stop: Room 410, Westbury, NY 11590; telephone
(516) 228-7330; email andrea.jimenez@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.

Background

EASA, which is the Technical Agent for the Member States of the
European Union, has issued EASA AD 2021-0096, dated March 31, 2021
(EASA AD 2021-0096), to correct an unsafe condition for Leonardo S.p.A.
Helicopters, formerly Finmeccanica S.p.A., AgustaWestland S.p.A.,
Agusta S.p.A.; and AgustaWestland Philadelphia Corporation, formerly
Agusta Aerospace Corporation, Model A119 and AW119MKII helicopters, all
serial numbers.

This proposed AD was prompted by reports of abnormal play on the
collective torque tube on two Model AW119 MKII helicopters.
Investigations revealed that these events were due to an erroneous
manufacturing process, affecting certain collective torque tube
assemblies. The affected batch numbers were identified. Leonardo S.p.a.
Model A119 helicopters are similar in design and may be subject to the
same unsafe condition revealed on the Model AW119 MKII helicopters. The
FAA is proposing this AD to address abnormal play on the collective
torque tube, which could result in reduced control of the helicopter,
resulting in a forced landing and consequent damage to the helicopter
and injury to occupants. See EASA AD 2021-0096 for additional
background information.

FAA's Determination

These helicopters have been approved by EASA and are approved for
operation in the United States. Pursuant to the FAA's bilateral
agreement with the European Union, EASA has notified the FAA about the
unsafe condition described in its AD. 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

EASA AD 2021-0096 requires repetitive inspections of the affected
torque tube assemblies for any deficiency (i.e., any play) by marking
the torque tube assembly and the collar and applying specific loads to
determine if there is any play; and replacement of any affected part
that has any play with a serviceable part. EASA AD 2021-0096 also
requires the eventual replacement of any affected part with a
serviceable part, and specifies that replacement of an affected part on
a helicopter constitutes terminating action for the repetitive
inspections for that helicopter.

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.

Proposed AD Requirements in This NPRM

This proposed AD would require accomplishing the actions specified
in EASA AD 2021-0096, described previously, as incorporated by
reference, except for any differences identified as exceptions in the
regulatory text of this proposed AD and except as discussed under
"Differences Between this Proposed AD and the EASA AD."

Explanation of Required Compliance Information

In the FAA's ongoing efforts to improve the efficiency of the AD
process, the FAA developed a process to use certain civil aviation
authority (CAA) ADs as the primary source of information for compliance
with requirements for corresponding FAA ADs. The FAA has been
coordinating this process with manufacturers and CAAs. As a result,
EASA AD 2021-0096 will be incorporated by reference in the FAA final
rule. This proposed AD would, therefore, require compliance EASA AD
2021-0096 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 EASA AD 2021-0096 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 EASA AD 2021-
0096. Service information specified in EASA AD 2021-0096 that is
required for compliance with it will be available at https://www.
regulations.gov by searching for and locating Docket No. FAA-2021-
0572 after the FAA final rule is published.

Differences Between This Proposed AD and the EASA AD

EASA AD 2021-0096 supersedes EASA AD 2019-0057, dated March 20,
2019 (EASA AD 2019-0057). The Group 1 helicopters identified in both
EASA AD 2021-0096 and EASA AD 2019-0057 are helicopters with collective
stick torque tube assemblies having part number (P/N) 109-0011-03-105
and batch number 823207 or earlier. Paragraph (1) of EASA AD 2021-0096
addresses Group 1 helicopters that have incorporated the actions
required by paragraph (2) of EASA AD 2019-0057. The FAA did not issue
an AD that corresponds to EASA AD 2019-0057, therefore, this proposed
AD would require, for Group 1 helicopters, an initial inspection of the
torque tube assembly within 50 hours time-in-service (TIS) after the
effective date of the FAA AD and repetitive inspections thereafter at
intervals not to exceed 100 hours TIS.

In addition, where paragraph (5) of EASA AD 2021-0096 specifies,
for Group 1 helicopters, replacement of an affected part with a
serviceable part "within 36 months after April 3, 2019 [the effective
date of EASA AD 2019-0057]", for this proposed AD, the compliance time
would be within 24 months after the effective date of the FAA AD.

Costs of Compliance

The FAA estimates that this proposed AD affects 136 helicopters of
U.S. registry. The FAA estimates the following costs to comply with
this proposed AD:

Estimated Costs

The FAA has included all known costs in its cost estimate.
According to the manufacturer, however, some of the costs of this
proposed AD may be covered under warranty, thereby reducing the cost
impact on affected operators.

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) 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 adding the following new airworthiness
directive: