[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 166 (Friday, August 27, 2010)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 52614-52616]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-21449]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Aviation Administration
14 CFR Part 25
[Docket No. NM433; Special Conditions No. 25-411-SC]
Special Conditions: Embraer Model ERJ 170-100 SU Series
Airplanes; Seats With Non-Traditional, Large, Non-Metallic Panels
AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.
ACTION: Final special conditions; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: These special conditions are issued for the Embraer Model ERJ
170-100 SU series airplanes. These airplanes, as modified by C&D
Zodiac, Inc., will have a novel or unusual design feature associated
with seats that include non-traditional, large, non-metallic panels
that would affect survivability during a post-crash fire event. The
applicable airworthiness regulations do not contain adequate or
appropriate safety standards for this design feature. These special
conditions contain the additional safety standards that the
Administrator considers necessary to establish a level of safety
equivalent to that established by the existing airworthiness standards.
DATES: The effective date of these special conditions is August 18,
2010. We must receive your comments by September 27, 2010.
ADDRESSES: You must mail two copies of your comments to: Federal
Aviation Administration, Transport Airplane Directorate, Attn: Rules
Docket (ANM-113), Docket No. NM433, 1601 Lind Avenue, SW., Renton,
Washington 98057-3356. You may deliver two copies to the Transport
Airplane Directorate at the above address. You must mark your comments:
Docket No. NM433. You can inspect comments in the Rules Docket
weekdays, except Federal holidays, between 7:30 a.m. and 4 p.m.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jayson Claar, FAA, ANM-115, Transport
Airplane Directorate, Aircraft Certification Service, 16501 Lind
Avenue, SW., Renton, WA 98057-3356; telephone (425) 227-2194; facsimile
(425) 227-1232.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
The FAA has determined that notice of, and opportunity for prior
public comment on, these special conditions are impracticable because
these procedures would significantly delay issuance of the design
approval and thus delivery of the affected aircraft. In addition, the
substance of these special conditions has been subject to the public-
comment process in several prior instances with no substantive comments
received. The FAA therefore finds that good cause exists for making
these special conditions effective upon issuance.
Comments Invited
We invite interested people to take part in this rulemaking by
sending written comments, data, or views. The most helpful comments
reference a specific portion of the special conditions, explain the
reason for any recommended change, and include supporting data. We ask
that you send us two copies of written comments.
We will file in the docket all comments we receive, as well as a
report summarizing each substantive public contact with FAA personnel
about these special conditions. You can inspect the docket before and
after the comment closing date. If you wish to review the docket in
person, go to the address in the ADDRESSES section of this preamble
between 7:30 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal
holidays.
We will consider all comments we receive by the closing date for
comments. We will consider comments filed late if it is possible to do
so without incurring expense or delay. We may change these special
conditions based on the comments we receive.
If you want us to acknowledge receipt of your comments on these
special conditions, include with your comments a self-addressed,
stamped postcard on which you have written the docket number. We will
stamp the date on the postcard and mail it back to you.
Background
On June 16, 2010, C&D Zodiac, Inc., 5701 Bolsa Ave,, Huntington
Beach, California 92647, applied for a Supplemental Type Certificate
(STC) for an interior modification to include seats with large, non-
metallic panels in the cabin interior in the Embraer Model ERJ 170-100
SU series airplanes. The Model ERJ 170-100 SU, which is currently
approved under Type Certificate No. A56NM, is a 76 passenger, twin-
engine regional jet with a maximum takeoff weight of 82,011 pounds.
The applicable airplane regulations, currently approved under Title
14, Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR) part 25, do not require seats
to meet the more-stringent flammability standards required of large,
non-metallic panels in the cabin interior. At the time the applicable
rules were written, seats were designed with a metal frame covered by
fabric, not with large, non-metallic panels. Seats also met the then-
recently adopted standards for flammability of seat cushions. With the
seat design being mostly fabric and metal, the contribution to a fire
in the cabin had been minimized and was not considered a threat. For
these reasons, seats did not need to be tested to heat-release and
smoke-emission requirements.
Seat designs have now evolved to occasionally include non-
traditional, large, non-metallic panels. Taken in total, the surface
area of these panels is on the same order as the sidewall and overhead
stowage bin interior panels. To provide the level of passenger
protection intended by the airworthiness standards, these non-
traditional, large, non-metallic panels in the cabin must meet the
standards of part 25, Appendix F, parts IV and V, heat-release and
smoke-emission requirements.
[[Page 52615]]
Type Certification Basis
Under the provisions of Sec. 21.101, C&D Zodiac, Inc., must show
that the Model ERJ 170-100 SU, as changed, continues to meet the
applicable provisions of the regulations incorporated by reference in
Type Certificate No. A56NM. The regulations incorporated by reference
in the type certificate are commonly referred to as the original type
certification basis. The regulations incorporated by reference in Type
Certificate No. A56NM are as follows: 14 CFR part 25, as amended by
Amendments 25-1 through 25-101.
If the Administrator finds that the applicable airworthiness
regulations (i.e., 14 CFR part 25) do not contain adequate or
appropriate safety standards for the Model ERJ-170-100 SU, because of a
novel or unusual design feature, special conditions are prescribed
under the provisions of Sec. 21.16.
In addition to the applicable airworthiness regulations and special
conditions, the Model ERJ 170-100 SU series airplanes must comply with
the fuel vent and exhaust emission requirements of 14 CFR part 34 and
the noise certification requirements of 14 CFR part 36.
The FAA issues special conditions, as defined in 14 CFR 11.19, in
accordance with Sec. 11.38, and they become part of the type-
certification basis under Sec. 21.101.
Special conditions are initially applicable to the model for which
they are issued. Should the applicant apply for an STC to modify any
other model included on the same type certificate to incorporate the
same novel or unusual design feature, the special conditions would also
apply to the other model.
Novel or Unusual Design Features
The Model ERJ 170-100 SU series airplanes will incorporate the
following novel or unusual design features:
These models offer interior arrangements that include passenger
seats that incorporate non-traditional, large, non-metallic panels in
lieu of the traditional metal frame covered by fabric. The flammability
properties of these panels have been shown to significantly affect the
survivability of occupants of the cabin in the event of fire. These
seats are considered a novel design for transport category airplanes
that include Amendment 25-61 and Amendment 25-66 in the certification
basis, and were not considered when those airworthiness standards were
established.
The existing regulations do not provide adequate or appropriate
safety standards for seat designs that incorporate non-traditional,
large, non-metallic panels. To provide a level of safety equivalent to
that provided by the balance of the cabin, additional airworthiness
standards, in the form of special conditions, are necessary. These
special conditions supplement Sec. 25.853. The requirements contained
in these special conditions consist of applying the identical test
conditions, required of all other large panels in the cabin, to seats
with non-traditional, large, non-metallic panels.
Definition of ``Non-Traditional, Large, Non-Metallic Panel''
A non-traditional, large, non-metallic panel, in this case, is
defined as a panel with exposed-surface areas greater than 1.5 square
feet installed per seat place. The panel may consist of either a single
component or multiple components in a concentrated area. Examples of
parts of the seat where these non-traditional panels are installed
include, but are not limited to: seat backs, bottoms and leg/foot
rests, kick panels, back shells, and credenzas and associated
furniture. Examples of traditional exempted parts of the seat include:
arm caps, armrest close-outs such as end bays and armrest-styled center
consoles, food trays, and video monitors and shrouds.
Clarification of ``Exposed''
``Exposed'' is considered to include those panels directly exposed
to the passenger cabin in the traditional sense, plus those panels
enveloped such as by a dress cover. Traditional fabrics or leathers
currently used on seats are excluded from these special conditions.
These materials must still comply with Sec. Sec. 25.853(a) and
25.853(c) if used as a covering for a seat cushion, or Sec. 25.853(a)
if installed elsewhere on the seat. Non-traditional, large, non-
metallic panels covered with traditional fabrics or leathers will be
tested without their coverings or covering attachments.
Discussion
In the early 1980s, the FAA conducted extensive research on the
effects of post-crash flammability in the passenger cabin. As a result
of this research and service experience, we adopted new standards for
interior surfaces associated with larger surface area parts.
Specifically, the rules require measurement of heat release and smoke
emission (part 25, Appendix F, parts IV and V) for the affected parts.
Heat release has been shown to have a direct correlation with post-
crash, fire-survival time. The materials that comply with the standards
(i.e., Sec. 25.853, titled ``Compartment Interiors,'' as amended by
Amendments 25-61 and 25-66) extended survival time by approximately 2
minutes over materials that do not comply.
At the time Amendment 25-61 was written, the potential application
of the requirement to seats was explored. The seat frame itself was not
a concern because it was primarily made of aluminum and included only
small amounts of non-metallic materials (for example, a food tray table
and armrest closeout). It was determined that the overall effect on
survivability was negligible, whether or not these panels met the heat-
release and smoke-emission requirements. The requirements therefore did
not address seats, and the preambles to both Notice of Proposed Rule
Making (NPRM) 85-10 and the final rule (Amendment 25-61) specifically
noted that they were excluded ``because the recently adopted standards
for flammability of seat cushions will greatly inhibit involvement of
the seats.''
In the late 1990s, when it became clear that seat designs were
evolving to include large non-metallic panels with surface areas that
would impact survivability during a cabin fire event compared to
partitions or galleys, the FAA issued Policy Memorandum 97-112-39. This
memo noted that large surface area panels must comply with heat-release
and smoke-emission requirements, even if they were attached to a seat.
If the FAA had not issued such a policy, seat designs would have been
viewed as a loophole to the airworthiness standards that would result
in an unacceptable decrease in survivability during a cabin fire event.
Applicability
As discussed above, these special conditions are applicable to the
Model ERJ 170-100 SU series airplanes. Should C&D Zodiac, Inc., apply
at a later date for an STC to modify any other model included on Type
Certificate No. A56NM to incorporate the same novel or unusual design
feature, these special conditions would apply to that model as well.
Conclusion
This action affects only certain novel or unusual design features
on Embraer Model ERJ 170-100 SU series airplanes. It is not a rule of
general applicability and affects only the applicant who applied to the
FAA for approval of these features on the airplane.
The substance of these special conditions has been subjected to the
notice and comment period in several prior instances and has been
derived without substantive change from those previously issued. It is
unlikely that
[[Page 52616]]
prior public comment would result in a significant change from the
substance contained herein. Therefore, because a delay would
significantly affect the certification of the airplane, which is
imminent, the FAA has determined that prior public notice and comment
are unnecessary and impracticable, and good cause exists for adopting
these special conditions upon issuance. The FAA is requesting comments
to allow interested persons to submit views that may not have been
submitted in response to the prior opportunities for comment described
above.
List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 25
Aircraft, Aviation safety, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements.
The authority citation for these special conditions is as follows:
Authority: 49 U.S.C. 106(g), 40113, 44701, 44702, 44704.
The Special Conditions
0
Accordingly, pursuant to the authority delegated to me by the
Administrator, the following special conditions are issued as part of
the supplemental type certification basis for Embraer Model ERJ 170-100
SU series airplanes modified by C&D Zodiac, Inc.
1. Except as provided in special condition number 3, below,
compliance with heat-release and smoke-emission testing requirements of
Sec. 25.853, and Appendix F, parts IV and V, is required for seats
that incorporate non-traditional, large, non-metallic panels that may
be either a single component or multiple components in a concentrated
area in their design.
2. The applicant may designate up to and including 1.5 square feet
of non-traditional, non-metallic panel material per seat place that
does not have to comply with special condition number 1, above. A
triple-seat assembly may have a total of 4.5 square feet excluded on
any portion of the assembly (e.g., outboard seat place, 1 square foot;
middle, 1 square foot; and inboard, 2.5 square feet).
3. Seats do not have to meet the test requirements of part 25,
Appendix F, parts IV and V, when installed in compartments that are not
otherwise required to meet these requirements. Examples include:
a. Airplanes with passenger capacities of 19 or less,
b. Airplanes that do not have Sec. 25.853, Amendment 25-61 or
later, in their certification basis and do not need to comply with the
requirements of Sec. 121.312, and
c. Airplanes exempted from Sec. 25.853, Amendment 25-61 or later.
Issued in Renton, Washington, on August 18, 2010.
Jeffrey E. Duven,
Acting Manager, Transport Airplanes Directorate, Aircraft Certification
Service.
[FR Doc. 2010-21449 Filed 8-26-10; 8:45 am]
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