AD 2021-23-16

This AD is effective January 11, 2022.

The Director of the Federal Register approved the incorporation by reference of a certain publication listed in this AD as of January 11, 2022.

For service information identified in this final rule, contact the Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand, Level 15, Asteron Centre, 55 Featherston Street, Wellington 6011; phone: +64 4 560 9400; fax: +64 4 569 2024; email: info@caa.govt.nz. You may view this service information at the FAA, Airworthiness Products Section, Operational Safety Branch, 901 Locust, Kansas City, MO 64106. For information on the availability of this material at the FAA, call (816) 329-4148. It is also available at https://www.regulations.gov by searching for and locating Docket No. FAA-2021-0711.

Mike Kiesov, Aviation Safety Engineer, General Aviation & Rotorcraft Section, International Validation Branch, FAA, 901 Locust, Room 301, Kansas City, MO 64106; phone: (816) 329-4144; fax: (816) 329-4090; email: mike.kiesov@faa.gov.

The FAA issued a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to amend 14 CFR part 39 by adding an AD that would apply to certain serial-numbered Pacific Aerospace Limited Model 750XL airplanes fitted with an air conditioner and/or standby alternator. The NPRM published in the Federal Register on August 27, 2021 (86 FR 48086). The NPRM was prompted by MCAI originated by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), which is the aviation authority for New Zealand. The CAA of New Zealand has issued AD DCA/750XL/37, effective April 25, 2019 (referred to after this as “the MCAI”), to correct an unsafe condition for certain Pacific Aerospace Limited Model 750XL airplanes. The MCAI states:

DCA/750XL/37 is prompted by a review of the installation of the engine fuel lines and the electrical installation forward of the engine firewall on aircraft fitted with an air conditioner and/or a standby alternator, including those aircraft configured for the installation of an air conditioner and/or a standby alternator. It was found that the engine fuel feed lines hoses could possibly chafe against the adjacent electrical wiring and the ignition exciter, which could result in a fuel leak and possible fire. The [CAA] AD is issued to introduce the corrective actions in Pacific Aerospace Mandatory Service Bulletin (MSB) PACSB/XL/113 issue 2, dated 8 March 2019.

You may examine the MCAI in the AD docket at https://www.regulations.gov by searching for and locating Docket No. FAA-2021-0711.

The FAA received a comment from an individual who supported the NPRM without change.

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 and service information referenced above. The FAA reviewed the relevant data, considered any comments received, and determined that air safety requires adopting this AD as proposed. Accordingly, the FAA is issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products. This AD is adopted as proposed in the NPRM.

The FAA reviewed Pacific Aerospace Mandatory Service Bulletin PACSB/XL/113, Issue 2, dated March 8, 2019. The service information contains procedures for inspecting the engine fuel feed line hoses and the electrical wiring for chafing or damage, rerouting all fuel lines and the fuel transducer and pressure switch wiring (including installing P clips), and inspecting the fuel hose for chafing and replacing chafed fire sleeves or fuel hoses if necessary. 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 ADDRESSES.

The MCAI requires an inspection at the next 150 hour maintenance inspection or within the next 50 hours time-in-service (TIS), whichever occurs later, while this AD requires those actions within 50 hours TIS or at the next annual inspection after the effective date of this AD, whichever occurs later. If there is no chafing and damage found during the inspection, the MCAI requires certain follow-on actions at the next 300 hour maintenance inspection or within the next 50 hours TIS, whichever is later. This AD requires those actions within 50 hours TIS or at the next annual inspection, whichever occurs later, because there is no regulatory requirement for operators in the U.S. to have 150-hour or 300-hour maintenance inspections.

The FAA estimates that this AD affects 23 airplanes of U.S. registry. The FAA also estimates that it will take about 5 work-hours per airplane and require parts costing $20 per airplane to comply with the inspection and re-routing that are required by this AD. The average labor rate is $85 per work-hour.

Based on these figures, the FAA estimates the inspection and re-routing cost of this AD on U.S. operators to be $10,235, or $445 per airplane.

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

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.

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) Will not affect intrastate aviation in Alaska, 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.

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 adding the following new airworthiness directive: