Summary
This document proposes to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) that would apply to certain The New Piper Aircraft, Inc. (Piper) Models PA-31, PA-31-300, PA-31-325, and PA-31-350 airplanes. The proposed AD would require replacing the lower wing splice plate and reworking the lower spar caps. The proposed AD results from numerous reports of fretting and cracking of the lower wing splice plates on Piper PA-31 series airplanes in Australia, and a report of one incident in the United States. The actions specified by the proposed AD are intended to prevent failure of the lower wing splice plate caused by fretting and cracking, which could result in loss of control of the airplane.