[Federal Register: August 22, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 161)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 48848-48850]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr22au05-6]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Aviation Administration
14 CFR Part 39
[Docket No. FAA-2005-20662; Directorate Identifier 2004-NM-191-AD;
Amendment 39-14225; AD 2005-17-04]
RIN 2120-AA64
Airworthiness Directives; McDonnell Douglas Model DC-10-10, DC-
10-10F, DC-10-15, DC-10-30, DC-10-30F (KC-10A and KDC-10), DC-10-40,
DC-10-40F, MD-10-10F, and MD-10-30F Airplanes; and Model MD-11 and MD-
11F Airplanes
AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Department of
Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for
certain McDonnell Douglas airplanes. This AD requires a general visual
inspection for damage to the Firex discharge pipes and wye assembly of
the fire extinguishing system of the number 2 engine; and corrective
and other specified actions, as applicable. This AD results from
reports of freezing damage to the Firex discharge pipes and wye
assembly of the number 2 engine, and one report of a level 1 ENG FIRE
AGENT LO alert during flight. We are issuing this AD to prevent
accumulation of water in the discharge pipes and possible consequent
freezing damage to the discharge pipes and wye assembly, which could
lead to failure of the fire extinguishing system during a fire in the
number 2 engine.
DATES: Effective September 26, 2005.
The Director of the Federal Register approved the incorporation by
reference of certain publications listed in the AD as of September 26,
2005.
ADDRESSES: You may examine the AD docket on the Internet at http://dms.dot.gov
or in person at the Docket Management Facility, U.S.
Department of Transportation, 400 Seventh Street SW., Nassif Building,
Room PL-401, Washington, DC.
Contact Boeing Commercial Airplanes, Long Beach Division, 3855
Lakewood Boulevard, Long Beach, California 90846, Attention: Data and
Service Management, Dept. C1-L5A (D800-0024), for service information
identified in this AD.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Samuel Lee, Aerospace Engineer,
Propulsion Branch, ANM-140L, FAA, Los Angeles Aircraft Certification
Office, 3960 Paramount Boulevard, Lakewood, California 90712-4137;
telephone (562) 627-5262; fax (562) 627-5210.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Examining the Docket
You may examine the AD docket on the Internet at http://dms.dot.gov
or in person at the Docket Management Facility office between 9 a.m.
and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. The Docket
Management Facility office (telephone (800) 647-5227) is located on the
plaza level of the Nassif Building at the street address stated in the
ADDRESSES section.
Discussion
The FAA issued a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to amend 14
CFR part 39 to include an AD that would apply to certain McDonnell
Douglas airplanes. That NPRM was published in the Federal Register on
March 22, 2005 (70 FR 14432). That NPRM proposed to require a general
visual inspection for damage to the Firex discharge pipes and wye
assembly of the fire extinguishing system of the number 2 engine; and
corrective and other specified actions, as applicable.
Comments
We provided the public the opportunity to participate in the
development of this AD. We have considered the comments that have been
received on the NPRM.
Explanation of New Relevant Service Information
Since we issued the NPRM, Boeing has released Boeing Alert Service
Bulletin DC10-26A065, Revision 1, dated May 20, 2005; and Boeing Alert
Service Bulletin MD11-26A060, Revision 1, dated May 10, 2005. We have
reviewed the procedures in the revised service bulletins and determined
that they are essentially the
[[Page 48849]]
same as those in the original issues of the service bulletins, with no
additional work required. The revised service bulletins show an
increase in the cost for required parts. However, we have determined
that this increase will not have a significant impact on the cost to
operators. Therefore, we have revised paragraphs (c) and (f) in the
final rule to specify the revised service bulletins as the primary
sources of service information; and revised the ``Costs of Compliance''
section in the final rule to reflect the increased parts cost. We have
also inserted new paragraph (g) in the final rule to give credit for
modifications already accomplished using the original issues of the
service bulletins and re-identified paragraph (g) of the NPRM as
paragraph (h) in the final rule.
Support for the Proposed AD
One commenter supports the intent of the subject NPRM and the
proposed actions of the AD.
Request for Extended Compliance Time
One commenter agrees with the intent of the NPRM but requests that
we revise the compliance time from 12 months to 18 months. The
commenter states that a compliance time of 12 months will force
operators to perform required modifications during line maintenance
between heavy maintenance check intervals. The commenter states that
performing the modifications during heavy maintenance checks in a
hangar environment, instead of during line operations, would reduce the
chances of modification errors. The commenter states that it has not
had any reports of problems with delivery of the Firex agent when the
engine fire extinguishing system was activated and asserts that an
additional six months added to the compliance time would have no
significant impact on safety.
We agree with this request. We have re-evaluated all available
reports and have determined that increasing the compliance time by six
months will not have any significant impact on safety. Therefore, we
have revised the compliance time to 18 months in the final rule.
Explanation of Editorial Change
We discovered a math error in the ``Costs of Compliance'' section
of the NPRM. The total number of U.S.-registered airplanes in the
``Inspection Costs'' table is shown as 343; it should have been 453.
Though changing the number of airplanes from 343 to 453 appears to
increase costs for operators, we have determined that no additional
burden is imposed on operators because 453 is the number of airplanes
actually identified by the service information as referenced in the
applicability of this AD. We have revised the ``Inspection Costs''
table in the final rule to reflect this correction.
Conclusion
We have carefully reviewed the available data, including the
comments that have been received, and determined that air safety and
the public interest require adopting the AD with the changes described
previously. We have determined that these changes will not
significantly increase the economic burden on any operator and will not
increase the scope of the AD.
Costs of Compliance
There are about 530 airplanes of the affected design in the
worldwide fleet. The following tables provide the estimated costs for
U.S. operators to comply with this AD. The required actions will be
performed at an estimated average labor rate of $65 per work hour.
Inspection Costs for All Airplanes
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Number of U.S.-
Action Work hours Cost per registered Fleet cost
airplane airplanes
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Inspection.................................. 1 $65 453 $29,445
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Replacement Costs for Model MD-11 and MD-11F Airplanes
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Number of U.S.-
Action Work hours Parts cost Cost per registered Fleet cost
airplane airplanes
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Replace discharge pipe......... 2 $7,386 $7,516 195 $1,465,620
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Replacement Costs For Model DC-10-10, DC-10-10F, DC-10-15, DC-10-30, DC-10-30F (KC-10A and KDC-10), DC-10-40, DC-
10-40F, MD-10-10F, and MD-10-30F Airplanes
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Number of U.S.-
Group Action Work hours Parts cost Cost per registered Fleet cost
airplane airplanes
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1............ Replace discharge 2 $7,386 $7,516 231 $1,763,196
pipe.
2............ Replace discharge 2 9,010 9,140 16 146,240
pipe.
3............ Replace discharge 2 7,386 7,516 11 82,676
pipe.
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Authority for This Rulemaking
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
[[Page 48850]]
products identified in this rulemaking action.
Regulatory Findings
We have 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. See the ADDRESSES
section for a location to examine the regulatory evaluation.
List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 39
Air transportation, Aircraft, Aviation safety, Incorporation by
reference, Safety.
Adoption of the Amendment
0
Accordingly, under the authority delegated to me by the Administrator,
the FAA amends 14 CFR part 39 as follows:
PART 39--AIRWORTHINESS DIRECTIVES
0
1. The authority citation for part 39 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 49 U.S.C. 106(g), 40113, 44701.
Sec. 39.13 [Amended]
0
2. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) amends Sec. 39.13 by
adding the following new airworthiness directive (AD):
2005-17-04 McDonnell Douglas: Amendment 39-14225. Docket No. FAA-
2005-20662; Directorate Identifier 2004-NM-191-AD.
Effective Date
(a) This AD becomes effective September 26, 2005.
Affected ADs
(b) None.
Applicability
(c) This AD applies to McDonnell Douglas Model DC-10-10, DC-10-
10F, DC-10-15, DC-10-30, DC-10-30F (KC-10A and KDC-10), DC-10-40,
DC-10-40F, MD-10-10F, and MD-10-30F airplanes as identified in
Boeing Alert Service Bulletin DC10-26A065, Revision 1, dated May 20,
2005; and Model MD-11 and MD-11F airplanes as identified in Boeing
Alert Service Bulletin MD11-26A060, Revision 1, dated May 10, 2005;
certificated in any category.
Unsafe Condition
(d) This AD was prompted by reports of freezing damage to the
Firex discharge pipes and wye assembly of the number 2 engine, and
one report of a level 1 ENG FIRE AGENT LO alert during flight. We
are issuing this AD to prevent accumulation of water in the
discharge pipes and possible consequent freezing damage to the
discharge pipes and wye assembly, which could lead to failure of the
fire extinguishing system during a fire in the number 2 engine.
Compliance
(e) You are responsible for having the actions required by this
AD performed within the compliance times specified, unless the
actions have already been done.
Inspection and Corrective and Other Specified Actions
(f) Within 18 months after the effective date of this AD,
perform a general visual inspection for damage to the Firex
discharge pipes and wye assembly of the fire extinguishing system of
the number 2 engine, and corrective and other specified actions; by
doing all the actions specified in the Accomplishment Instructions
of Boeing Alert Service Bulletin MD11-26A060, Revision 1, dated May
10, 2005 (for Model M-D11 and MD-11F airplanes); or Boeing Alert
Service Bulletin DC10-26A065, Revision 1, dated May 20, 2005 (for
Model DC-10-10, DC-10-10F, DC-10-15, DC-10-30, DC-10-30F (KC-10A and
KDC-10), DC-10-40, DC-10-40F, MD-10-10F, and MD-10-30F airplanes);
as applicable. Do the corrective and other specified actions, as
applicable, prior to further flight.
Note 1: For the purposes of this AD, a general visual inspection
is: ``A visual examination of an interior or exterior area,
installation, or assembly to detect obvious damage, failure, or
irregularity. This level of inspection is made from within touching
distance unless otherwise specified. A mirror may be necessary to
ensure visual access to all surfaces in the inspection area. This
level of inspection is made under normally available lighting
conditions such as daylight, hangar lighting, flashlight, or
droplight and may require removal or opening of access panels or
doors. Stands, ladders, or platforms may be required to gain
proximity to the area being checked.''
Actions Accomplished Previously
(g) Actions accomplished before the effective date of this AD in
accordance with the Accomplishment Instructions of Boeing Alert
Service Bulletin MD11-26A060, dated July 20, 2004; or Boeing Alert
Service Bulletin DC10-26A065, dated August 19, 2004; as applicable;
are acceptable for compliance with the corresponding actions
required by this AD.
Alternative Methods of Compliance (AMOCs)
(h) The Manager, Los Angeles Aircraft Certification Office, FAA,
has the authority to approve AMOCs for this AD, if requested in
accordance with the procedures found in 14 CFR 39.19.
Material Incorporated by Reference
(i) You must use Boeing Alert Service Bulletin DC10-26A065,
Revision 1, dated May 20, 2005; or Boeing Alert Service Bulletin
MD11-26A060, Revision 1, dated May 10, 2005; as applicable; to
perform the actions that are required by this AD, unless the AD
specifies otherwise. The Director of the Federal Register approved
the incorporation by reference of these documents in accordance with
5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51. Contact Boeing Commercial
Airplanes, Long Beach Division, 3855 Lakewood Boulevard, Long Beach,
California 90846, Attention: Data and Service Management, Dept. C1-
L5A (D800-0024), for copies of this service information. You may
review copies at the Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of
Transportation, 400 Seventh Street SW., Room PL-401, Nassif
Building, Washington, DC; on the Internet at http://dms.dot.gov; or
at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). For
information on the availability of this material at the NARA, call
(202) 741-6030, or go to http://www.archives.gov/ federal--register/
code--of--federal--regulations/ ibr--locations.html.
Issued in Renton, Washington, on August 10, 2005.
Kalene C. Yanamura,
Acting Manager, Transport Airplane Directorate, Aircraft Certification
Service.
[FR Doc. 05-16268 Filed 8-19-05; 8:45 am]
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