Summary
This document proposes superseding an existing airworthiness directive (AD) for Bell Helicopter Textron Canada (Bell) Model 222, 222B, 222U, 230, and 430 helicopters. That AD currently requires visually inspecting the main rotor hydraulic actuator support (support) to verify the presence of all dowel pins and sealant between the support and transmission and verifying the proper torque of each attaching nut (nut). This action would require the same actions as the existing AD but would also require the repetitive actions at intervals not to exceed 600 hours time-in-service (TIS) or 12 months, whichever occurs first. This proposal is prompted by the discovery that the 12- month compliance requirement was correctly included in the Emergency AD (EAD) that we issued but was inadvertently omitted when we published the Final rule; request for comments following the issuance of the EAD. The actions specified by the proposed AD are intended to prevent failure of the support and subsequent loss of control of the helicopter.