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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Aviation Administration
14 CFR Part 39
[Docket No. FAA-2023-1807; Project Identifier MCAI-2023-00394-T]
RIN 2120-AA64
Airworthiness Directives; Embraer S.A. (Type Certificate
Previously Held by Yabora Industria Aeronautica
S.A.; Embraer S.A.; Empresa Brasileira de Aeronautica S.A.
(EMBRAER)) 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 Embraer S.A. Model EMB-135BJ airplanes. This proposed AD
was prompted by reports of missing sealant on the rivets installed in
the interface between rib 3 and the wing skin. This proposed AD would
require applying sealant on the rivets installed in the interface
between rib 3 and wing skin, as specified in an Agencia Nacional
de Aviacao Civil (ANAC) 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 October
16,
2023.
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 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.
AD Docket: You may examine the AD docket at regulations.gov under
Docket No. FAA-2023-1807; 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 mandatory continuing airworthiness
information (MCAI), any comments received, and other information. The
street address for Docket Operations is listed above.
Material Incorporated by Reference:
For material that is proposed for IBR in this NPRM,
contact National Civil Aviation Agency (ANAC), Aeronautical Products
Certification Branch (GGCP), Rua Dr. Orlando Feirabend Filho, 230--
Centro Empresarial Aquarius--Torre B--Andares 14 a 18, Parque
Residencial Aquarius, CEP 12.246-190--Sao Jose dos
Campos--SP, Brazil; telephone 55 (12) 3203-6600; email pac@anac.gov.br;
website anac.gov.br/en/. You may find this material on the ANAC website
at sistemas.anac.gov.br/certificacao/DA/DAE.asp. It is also available
at regulations.gov under Docket No. FAA-2023-1807.
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.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Hassan Ibrahim, Aviation Safety
Engineer, FAA, 1600 Stewart Avenue, Suite 410, Westbury, NY 11590;
telephone 206-231-3653; email hassan.m.ibrahim@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-2023-1807; Project Identifier
MCAI-2023-00394-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
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
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
Hassan Ibrahim, Aviation Safety Engineer, FAA, 1600 Stewart Avenue,
Suite 410, Westbury, NY 11590; telephone 206-231-3653; email
hassan.m.ibrahim@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 ANAC, which is the aviation authority for Brazil, has issued
ANAC AD 2023-03-01, effective March 6, 2023 (ANAC AD 2023-03-01) (also
referred to as the MCAI), to correct an unsafe condition for certain
Embraer S.A. Model EMB-135BJ airplanes. The MCAI states that missing
sealant was identified on the rivets installed in the interface between
rib 3 and the wing skin in some Embraer Model EMB-135BJ airplanes. The
lack of sealant when a failure on the rivet installation exists may
result in a potential ignition source inside the fuel tank during a
lightning strike, which, combined with flammable fuel vapors, could
result in a fuel tank explosion and consequent loss of the airplane.
The FAA is proposing this AD to address the unsafe condition on
these products.
You may examine the MCAI in the AD docket at regulations.gov under
Docket No. FAA-2023-1807.
Related Service Information Under 1 CFR Part 51
ANAC AD 2023-03-01 specifies procedures for applying sealant on the
rivets installed in the interface between rib 3 and wing skin.
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 ADDRESSES.
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 this State of Design Authority, it
has notified the FAA of the unsafe condition described in the MCAI
referenced above. The FAA is issuing this NPRM after determining that
the unsafe condition described previously is likely to exist or develop
in other products of the same type design.
Proposed AD Requirements in This NPRM
This proposed AD would require accomplishing the actions specified
in ANAC AD 2023-03-01 described previously, except for any differences
identified as exceptions in the regulatory text of this proposed 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 some 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, the
FAA proposes to incorporate ANAC AD 2023-03-01 by reference in the FAA
final rule. This proposed AD would, therefore, require compliance with
ANAC AD 2023-03-01 in its entirety through that incorporation, except
for any differences identified as exceptions in the regulatory text of
this proposed AD. Service information required by ANAC AD 2023-03-01
for compliance will be available at regulations.gov under Docket No.
FAA-2023-1807 after the FAA final rule is published.
Costs of Compliance
The FAA estimates that this AD, if adopted as proposed, would
affect 10 airplanes of U.S. registry. The FAA estimates the following
costs to comply with this proposed AD:
Estimated Costs for Required Actions
|
Labor cost
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Parts cost
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Cost per
product
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Cost on
U.S. operators
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| Up to 7 work-hours x $85 per
hour = $595 |
$0
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Up to $595
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Up to $5,950
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The FAA has included all known costs
in its cost estimate.
According to the manufacturer, however, some or all 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:
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