AD 2011-09-51

This AD is effective May 31, 2011 to all persons except those persons to whom it was made immediately effective by Emergency AD 2011-09-51, issued on April 26, 2011, which contained the requirements of this amendment.

On May 31, 2011, the Director of the Federal Register approved the incorporation by reference of certain publications listed in this AD.

We must receive comments on this AD by June 27, 2011.

You may send comments by any of the following methods:

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://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: U.S. Department of Transportation, Docket Operations, M-30, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.

For service information identified in this AD, contact Piaggio Aero Industries S.p.A-Airworthiness Office; Via Luigi Cibrario, 4—16154 Genova—Italy; telephone: +39 010 6481353; fax: +39 010 6481881; E-mail: airworthiness@piaggioaero.it. You may review copies of the referenced service information at the FAA, Small Airplane Directorate, 901 Locust, Kansas City, Missouri 64106. For information on the availability of this material at the FAA, call (816) 329-4148.

Mike Kiesov, Aerospace Engineer, 901 Locust, Room 301, Kansas City, Missouri 64106; telephone: (816) 329-4144; fax: (816) 329-4090.

The FAA received information on two incidents where Piaggio Model P-180 airplanes had water accumulation in the belly of the fuselage that froze and caused the flight controls to jam. On December 20, 2010, we issued Emergency AD 2011-01-53, amendment 39-16582 (76 FR 4056, January 24, 2011) to require an immediate functional test of the fuselage drain holes and a report of the results to the FAA. It also allows, with noted exceptions, for the return/position of the airplane to a home base, hangar, maintenance facility, etc.

Since we issued AD 2011-01-53, another Piaggio P-180 airplane experienced jamming of the flight control cables also due to water accumulating and freezing in the lower fuselage area. This event happened after this airplane had complied with AD 2011-01-53, noting no problems with the fuselage drain system.

The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), which is the Technical Agent for the Member States of the European Community, has issued AD No.: 2011-0074-E, dated April 22, 2011 (referred to after this as “the MCAI″), to correct an unsafe condition for the specified products. The MCAI states:

* * * another event of in-flight blockage of flight controls was reported by an operator. The aeroplane was already compliant with EASA AD 2010-0269-E, and during accomplishment of the AD required inspection no discrepancies had been noted, nor water or ice accumulation were reported. As a consequence, additional drain holes were not drilled.

For the reasons described above, this AD, which supersedes EASA AD 2010-0269-E, requires, in order to improve efficiency of the drainage system, to cut the rubber flap of the 2 aft flapper valves, to inspect the flapper valves for proper functioning and the subsequent accomplishment of a functional test of the fuselage drain holes.

Furthermore, for those MSN not compliant with Piaggio Aero Industries Service Bulletin (SB) 80-0291 and where no additional drain holes had been drilled in accordance with the accomplishment instructions of Piaggio Aero Industries Alert Service Bulletin ASB-80-0324, step 5, this AD requires drilling additional drain holes.

It is finally required to report the inspection results to Piaggio Aero industries.

You may obtain further information by examining the MCAI in the AD docket.

PIAGGIO AERO INDUSTRIES S.p.A has issued Service Bulletin (Mandatory) N.: 80-0330, dated April 21, 2011. The actions described in this service information are intended to correct the unsafe condition identified in the MCAI.

This product has been approved by the aviation authority of another country, and is approved for operation in the United States. Pursuant to our bilateral agreement with this State of Design Authority, they have notified us of the unsafe condition described in the MCAI and service information referenced above. We are issuing this AD because we evaluated all information provided by the State of Design Authority and determined the unsafe condition exists and is likely to exist or develop on other products of the same type design.

We have reviewed the MCAI and related service information and, in general, agree with their substance. But we might have found it necessary to use different words from those in the MCAI to ensure the AD is clear for U.S. operators and is enforceable. In making these changes, we do not intend to differ substantively from the information provided in the MCAI and related service information.

We might have also required different actions in this AD from those in the MCAI in order to follow FAA policies. Any such differences are described in a separate paragraph of the AD. These requirements take precedence over those copied from the MCAI.

An unsafe condition exists that requires the immediate adoption of this AD. The FAA has found that the risk to the flying public justifies waiving notice and comment prior to adoption of this rule because water may accumulate in the belly of the fuselage and freeze, which may cause the flight controls to jam. This condition may lead to loss of control. Therefore, we determined that notice and opportunity for public comment before issuing this AD are impracticable and that good cause exists for making this amendment effective in fewer than 30 days.

This AD is a final rule that involves requirements affecting flight safety, and we did not precede it by notice and opportunity for public comment. We invite you to send any written relevant data, views, or arguments about this AD. Send your comments to an address listed under the ADDRESSES section. Include “Docket No. FAA-2011-0468; Directorate Identifier 2011-CE-013-AD″ at the beginning of your comments. We specifically invite comments on the overall regulatory, economic, environmental, and energy aspects of this AD. We will consider all comments received by the closing date and may amend this AD because of those comments.

We will post all comments we receive, without change, to http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information you provide. We will also post a report summarizing each substantive verbal contact we receive about this AD.

We estimate that this AD will affect 102 products of U.S. registry. We also estimate that it would take about 9 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 the AD on U.S. operators to be $78,030, or $765 per product.

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.

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 DOT Regulatory Policies and Procedures (44 FR 11034, February 26, 1979); and

(3) 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.

We prepared a regulatory evaluation of the estimated costs to comply with this AD and placed it in the AD docket.

Air transportation, Aircraft, Aviation safety, Incorporation by reference, Safety.

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

1. The authority citation for part 39 continues to read as follows:

2. The FAA amends § 39.13 by removing Amendment 39-16582 (76 FR 4056, January 24, 2011), and adding the following new AD: