Summary
The FAA proposes to supersede an existing airworthiness directive (AD) that applies to certain McDonnell Douglas airplanes. The existing AD currently requires an initial general visual or dye penetrant inspection, repetitive dye penetrant inspections, and replacement, as necessary, of the rudder pedal bracket. The existing AD also requires, for certain airplanes, replacing the rudder pedal bracket assemblies with new, improved parts, which would terminate the repetitive inspections. This proposed AD would, for certain airplanes, reduce initial inspection thresholds, remove an inspection option, and lengthen the repetitive inspection intervals. This proposed AD results from reports of failures of the captain's rudder pedal brackets before reaching the initial inspection threshold identified in the existing AD. We are proposing this AD to prevent failure of the rudder pedal bracket assembly, which could result in the loss of rudder and braking control at either the captain's orfirst officer's position.