DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 39

[Docket No. FAA-2022-0388; Project Identifier MCAI-2020-01604-T]
RIN 2120-AA64

Airworthiness Directives; MHI RJ Aviation ULC (Type Certificate
Previously Held by Bombardier, Inc.) 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 certain MHI RJ Aviation ULC Model CL-600-2C10 (Regional Jet Series
700, 701 & 702), CL-600-2C11 (Regional Jet Series 550), CL-600-2D15
(Regional Jet Series 705), CL-600-2D24 (Regional Jet Series 900), and
CL-600-2E25 (Regional Jet Series 1000) airplanes. This proposed AD was
prompted by reports of the failure of certain primary ejector fuel feed
flexible hoses, which may have a thinner liner than specified by design
requirements, and are therefore more susceptible to cracking. This
proposed AD would require replacing the hoses. 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 May 16, 2022.

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 Bombardier service information identified in this NPRM, contact
MHI RJ Aviation ULC, 12655 Henri-Fabre Blvd., Mirabel, Qu[eacute]bec
J7N 1E1 Canada; Widebody Customer Response Center North America toll-
free telephone +1-844-272-2720 or direct-dial telephone +1-514-855-
8500; fax +1-514-855-8501; email thd.crj@mhirj.com; internet https://mhirj.com.
You may view this service information at the FAA, Airworthiness Products
Section, Operational Safety 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 at https://www.regulations.gov by
searching for and locating Docket No. FAA-2022-0388; 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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joseph Catanzaro, Aerospace Engineer,
Airframe and Propulsion Section, FAA, New York ACO Branch, 1600 Stewart
Avenue, Suite 410, Westbury, NY 11590; telephone 516-228-7366;
email 9-avs-nyaco-cos@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-2022-0388; Project Identifier
MCAI-2020-01604-T" 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
the 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
Joseph Catanzaro, Aerospace Engineer, Airframe and Propulsion Section,
FAA, New York ACO Branch, 1600 Stewart Avenue, Suite 410, Westbury, NY
11590; telephone 516-228-7366; email 9-avs-nyaco-cos@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

Transport Canada Civil Aviation (TCCA), which is the aviation
authority for Canada, has issued TCCA AD CF-2020-03, dated March 5,
2020 (TCCA AD CF-2020-03) (also referred to after this as the Mandatory
Continuing Airworthiness Information, or the MCAI), to correct an
unsafe condition for certain MHI RJ Aviation ULC Model CL-600-2C10
(Regional Jet Series 700, 701 & 702), CL-600-2C11 (Regional Jet Series
550), CL-600-2D15 (Regional Jet Series 705), CL-600-2D24 (Regional Jet
Series 900), and CL-600-2E25 (Regional Jet Series 1000) airplanes. You
may examine the MCAI in the AD docket at https://www.regulations.gov by
searching for and locating Docket No. FAA-2022-0388.

This proposed AD was prompted by reports of the failure of primary
ejector fuel feed flexible hoses with more than 30,000 flight hours,
installed in accordance with Bombardier Service Bulletin 670BA-28-008C,
dated January 23, 2003. In four of the events, the fuel was leaking
inside the center fuel tank from the cracked inner liner of the hose,
and caused a lateral fuel imbalance condition on the airplane. These
events resulted in an emergency descent or air turn back (ATB).
Subsequent investigation determined that hoses with part numbers (P/N)
CC670-62022-3 and CC670-62022-4, and serial numbers 001 through 2470
inclusive, may have a thinner Teflon[supreg] liner than specified by
the design requirements, and therefore are more susceptible to
cracking. Analysis also indicates that, depending on the size of the
crack and the resultant amount of fuel leakage, a fuel supply
disruption to the engines could be significant enough to cause an
inflight engine shutdown (IFSD). The FAA is proposing this AD to
address a possible fuel hose leak, which could cause a lateral
imbalance with an adverse effect on the airplane's controllability, or
could result in a dual IFSD. See the MCAI for additional background
information.

Related Service Information Under 1 CFR Part 51

Bombardier has issued Service Bulletin 670BA-28-040, dated
September 30, 2019. This service information describes procedures for,
among other actions, replacing any primary ejector fuel feed flexible
hose, (P/N) CC670-62022-3 and CC670-62022-4, having serial numbers 001
through 2470 inclusive. 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 the FAA's 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 FAA 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 AD Requirements in This NPRM

This proposed AD would require accomplishing the actions specified
in the service information already described.

Costs of Compliance

The FAA estimates that this AD, if adopted as proposed, would
affect 457 airplanes 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) 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: