AD 2016-26-05

We are superseding Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2014-26-08, for all Airbus Model A330-200, -200F, and -300 series airplanes. AD 2014-26-08 required revising the maintenance or inspection program to incorporate new maintenance requirements and airworthiness limitations. This new AD requires revising the maintenance or inspection program, as applicable, to incorporate new or revised airworthiness limitation requirements. This new AD also removes certain airplanes from the applicability. This AD was prompted by a determination that more restrictive maintenance instructions and airworthiness limitations are necessary. We are issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.

Final rule.

Adoption of the Amendment

Accordingly, under the authority delegated to me by the Administrator, the FAA amends 14 CFR part 39 as follows:

PART 39--AIRWORTHINESS DIRECTIVES

0 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]

0 2. The FAA amends Sec. 39.13 by removing Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2014-26-08, Amendment 39-18059 (80 FR 3866, January 26, 2015), and adding the following new AD:

2016-26-05 Airbus: Amendment 39-18763; Docket No. FAA-2016-9057; Directorate Identifier 2016-NM-055-AD.

(a) Effective Date

This AD is effective February 9, 2017.

(b) Affected ADs

This AD replaces AD 2014-26-08, Amendment 39-18059 (80 FR 3866, January 26, 2015) (``AD 2014-26-08'').

(c) Applicability

This AD applies to Airbus Model A330-201, -202, -203, -223, - 223F -243, -243F, -301, -302, -303, -321, -322, -323, -341, -342, and -343 airplanes, certificated in any category, with an original certificate of airworthiness or original export certificate of airworthiness issued on or before October 19, 2015.

(d) Subject

Air Transport Association (ATA) of America Code 05, Periodic inspections.

(e) Reason

This AD was prompted by a determination that more restrictive maintenance instructions and airworthiness limitations are necessary. We are issuing this AD to prevent safety-significant latent failures that would, in combination with one or more other specific failures or events, result in a hazardous or catastrophic failure condition.

(f) Compliance

Comply with this AD within the compliance times specified, unless already done.

(g) Retained: Revision of the Maintenance or Inspection Program, With No Changes

This paragraph restates the requirements of paragraph (k) of AD 2014-26-08, with no changes.
(1) Within 90 days after March 2, 2015 (the effective date of AD 2014-26-08): Revise the maintenance or inspection program, as applicable, to incorporate Airbus A330 Airworthiness Limitations Section ALS Part 3--Certification Maintenance Requirements, Revision 04, dated August 27, 2013. Within the applicable compliance time defined in the ``Record of Revisions'' section of Airbus A330 Airworthiness Limitations Section ALS Part 3--Certification Maintenance Requirements, Revision 04, dated August 27, 2013, except as provided by paragraph (g)(2) of this AD, accomplish all applicable maintenance tasks. Accomplishing the actions specified in paragraph (i) of this AD terminates the requirements of this paragraph.
(2) Where paragraph 3 of the ``Record of Revisions'' section of Airbus A330 Airworthiness Limitations Section ALS Part 3-- Certification Maintenance Requirements, Revision 04, dated August 27, 2013, specifies accomplishing the actions ``from 27 August 2013,'' this AD requires compliance within the specified compliance time after March 2, 2015 (the effective date of AD 2014-26-08).

(h) Retained: No Alternative Inspections or Intervals, With No Changes

This paragraph restates the requirements of paragraph (l) of AD 2014-26-08, with no changes. After accomplishment of the action required by paragraph (g)(1) of this AD, no alternative inspections or inspection intervals may be used, other than those specified in Airbus A330 Airworthiness Limitations Section ALS Part 3-- Certification Maintenance Requirements, Revision 04, dated August 27, 2013, except as provided by paragraphs (g)(2) and (i) of this AD, unless the inspections or intervals are approved as an AMOC in accordance with the procedures specified in paragraph (k)(1) of this AD.

(i) New: Revision of the Maintenance or Inspection Program

Within 90 days after the effective date of this AD: Revise the maintenance or inspection program, as applicable, to incorporate Airbus A330 Airworthiness Limitations Section ALS Part 3-- Certification Maintenance Requirements, Revision 05, dated October 19, 2015. Accomplishing the actions specified in this paragraph terminates the requirements of paragraph (g) of this AD.

(j) New: No Alternative Inspections or Intervals

After the action required by paragraph (i) of this AD has been done, no alternative inspections or inspection intervals may be used, other than those specified in Airbus A330 Airworthiness Limitations Section ALS Part 3--Certification Maintenance Requirements, Revision 05, dated October 19, 2015, unless the inspections or intervals are approved as an AMOC in accordance with the procedures specified in paragraph (k)(1) of this AD.

(k) Other FAA AD Provisions

The following provisions also apply to this AD:
(1) Alternative Methods of Compliance (AMOCs): The Manager, International Branch, ANM-116, Transport Airplane

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Directorate, FAA, has the authority to approve AMOCs for this AD, if requested using the procedures found in 14 CFR 39.19. In accordance with14 CFR 39.19, send your request to your principal inspector or local Flight Standards District Office, as appropriate. If sending information directly to the International Branch, send it to ATTN: Vladimir Ulyanov, Aerospace Engineer, International Branch, ANM-116, Transport Airplane Directorate, FAA, 1601 Lind Avenue SW., Renton, WA 98057-3356; telephone 425-227-1138; fax 425-227-1149. Information may be emailed to: 9-ANM-116-AMOC-REQUESTS@faa.gov. Before using any approved AMOC, notify your appropriate principal inspector, or lacking a principal inspector, the manager of the local flight standards district office/certificate holding district office.
(2) Contacting the Manufacturer: As of the effective date of this AD, for any requirement in this AD to obtain corrective actions from a manufacturer, the action must be accomplished using a method approved by the Manager, International Branch, ANM-116, Transport Airplane Directorate, FAA; or the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA); or Airbus's EASA Design Organization Approval (DOA). If approved by the DOA, the approval must include the DOA-authorized signature.

(l) Related Information

Refer to Mandatory Continuing Airworthiness Information (MCAI) EASA Airworthiness Directive 2016-0066, dated April 6, 2016, for related information. This MCAI may be found in the AD docket on the Internet at http://www.regulations.gov by searching for and locating Docket No. FAA-2016-9057.

(m) Material Incorporated by Reference

(1) The Director of the Federal Register approved the incorporation by reference (IBR) of the service information listed in this paragraph under 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51.
(2) You must use this service information as applicable to do the actions required by this AD, unless this AD specifies otherwise.
(3) The following service information was approved for IBR on February 9, 2017.
(i) Airbus A330 Airworthiness Limitations Section ALS Part 3-- Certification MaintenanceRequirements, Revision 05, dated October 19, 2015. The revision level of this document is identified on only the title page and in the Revision Status and the Record of Revisions.
(ii) Reserved.
(4) The following service information was approved for IBR on March 2, 2015 (80 FR 3866, January 26, 2015).
(i) Airbus A330 Airworthiness Limitations Section ALS Part 3-- Certification Maintenance Requirements, Revision 04, dated August 27, 2013. The revision level of this document is identified on only the title page and in the Record of Revisions. The revision date is not identified on the title page of this document.
(ii) Reserved.
(5) For service information identified in this AD, contact Airbus SAS, Airworthiness Office--EAL, 1 Rond Point Maurice Bellonte, 31707 Blagnac Cedex, France; telephone +33 5 61 93 36 96; fax +33 5 61 93 45 80; email airworthiness.A330@airbus.com; Internet http://www.airbus.com.
(6) You may view this service information at the FAA, Transport Airplane Directorate, 1601 Lind Avenue SW., Renton, WA. For information on the availability of this material at the FAA, call 425-227-1221.
(7) You may view this service information that is incorporated by reference at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). For information on the availability of this material at NARA, call 202-741-6030, or go to: http://www.archives.gov/federal-register/cfr/ibr-locations.html.

Discussion

We issued a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to amend 14 CFR part 39 to supersede AD 2014-26-08, Amendment 39-18059 (80 FR 3866, January 26, 2015) (``AD 2014-26-08''). AD 2014-26-08 applied to all Airbus Model A330-200, -200F, and -300 series airplanes. The NPRM published in the Federal Register on September 12, 2016 (81 FR 62676) (``the NPRM''). The NPRM was prompted by a determination that more restrictive maintenance instructions and airworthiness limitations are necessary. The NPRM proposed to require revising the maintenance or inspection program to incorporate new maintenance requirements and airworthiness limitations. The NPRM also proposed to remove certain airplanes from the applicability. We are issuing this AD to prevent safety-significant latent failures that would, in combination with one or more other specific failures or events, result in a hazardous or catastrophic failure condition.
The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), which is the Technical Agent for the Member States of the European Union, has issued EASA Airworthiness Directive 2016-0066, dated April 6, 2016 (referred to after this as the Mandatory Continuing Airworthiness Information, or ``the MCAI''), to correct an unsafe condition for all Model A330-200, - 200F, and -300 series airplanes. The MCAI states:

The airworthiness limitations are currently defined and published in the Airbus A330 and A340 Airworthiness Limitations Section (ALS) documents.
The mandatory instructions and airworthiness limitations applicable to the Certification Maintenance Requirements (CMR), which are approved by EASA, are specified in Airbus A330 and A340 ALS Part 3. Failure to comply with these instructions could result in an unsafe condition.
EASA issued AD 2013-0245 (A330 aeroplanes) [which corresponds to FAA AD 2014-26-08] and AD 2013-0021 (A340 aeroplanes) to require the actions as specified in Airbus A330 and A340 ALS Part 3 at Revision04 and Revision 02, respectively.
Since those [EASA] ADs were issued, Airbus issued Revision 05 and Revision 03, respectively, of Airbus A330 and A340 ALS Part 3, to introduce more restrictive maintenance requirements.
For the reason described above, this [EASA] AD retains the requirements of EASA AD 2013-0245 and [EASA] AD 2013-0021, which are superseded, and requires accomplishment of the actions specified in Airbus A330 ALS Part 3 Revision 05, or A340 ALS Part 3 Revision 03, as applicable * * *.

You may examine the MCAI in the AD docket on the Internet at http://www.regulations.gov by searching for and locating Docket No. FAA-2016- 9057.

Comments

We gave the public the opportunity to participate in developing this AD. We received no comments on the NPRM or on the determination of the cost to the public.

Conclusion

We reviewed the available data and determined that air safety and the public interest require adopting this AD as proposed, except for minor editorial changes. We have determined that these minor changes:
Are consistent with the intent that was proposed in the NPRM for correcting the unsafe condition; and
Do not add any additional burden upon the public than was already proposed in the NPRM.

Related Service Information Under 1 CFR Part 51

We reviewed Airbus A330 Airworthiness Limitations Section ALS Part 3--Certification Maintenance Requirements, Revision 04, dated August 17, 2013; and Revision 05, dated October 19, 2015. The service information describes updated inspections and intervals to be incorporated into the maintenance or inspection program. These documents are distinct because each revision contains unique changes to be incorporated into the maintenance or inspection program.
This service information is reasonably available because the interested parties

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have access to it through their normal course of business or by the means identified in the ADDRESSES section.Costs of Compliance

We estimate that this AD affects 104 airplanes of U.S. registry.
The actions required by AD 2014-26-08, and retained in this AD take about 1 work-hour per product, at an average labor rate of $85 per work-hour. Based on these figures, the estimated cost of the actions that are required by AD 2014-26-08 is $85 per product.
We also estimate that it takes about 2 work-hours per product to comply with the basic requirements of this AD. The average labor rate is $85 per work-hour. Based on these figures, we estimate the cost of this AD on U.S. operators to be $17,680, or $170 per product.

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.
We are 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

We determined that this AD will not have federalism implications under Executive Order 13132. This AD will 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 that this AD:
1. Is not a ``significant regulatory action'' under Executive Order 12866;
2. Is not a``significant rule'' under the DOT Regulatory Policies and Procedures (44 FR 11034, February 26, 1979);
3. Will not affect intrastate aviation in Alaska; and
4. 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.