Department of Transportation September 15, 2006 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Department of Transportation is directing all interested persons to show cause why it should not issue an order finding Compass Airlines, Inc. fit, willing, and able, and transfer to Compass the interstate scheduled passenger certificate authority currently held by Independence Air, Inc.

This document proposes adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for the specified Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation (Sikorsky) model helicopters. The AD would require, within a specified time, creating a component history card or equivalent record. The AD would also require recording the hours time-in-service (TIS) and the external lift cycles (lift cycles) for each main gearbox input left and right freewheel unit (IFWU) assembly. Also, the AD would require calculating a moving average of lift cycles per hour TIS at specified intervals on each IFWU assembly. The moving average would be used to determine if an IFWU assembly is used in repetitive external lift (REL) or non-REL helicopter operations. If an IFWU assembly is used in REL operations, this AD would require a repetitive inspection, which requires a visual and dimensional inspection of the IFWU assembly at specified intervals. This AD would also require recording certain information and replacing each part that is beyond the wear limits or that exhibits visual surface distress with an airworthy part. In addition, this AD would require permanently marking the REL IFWU camshafts and gear housings with the letters ``REL'' on the surface of these parts. This proposal is prompted by an accident in which the left and right IFWU assembly on a helicopter slipped or disengaged resulting in both engines overspeeding, engine shutdowns, and loss of engine power to the transmissions. The actions specified by the proposed AD are intended to prevent slipping in the IFWU assembly, loss of engine power to the transmissions, and subsequent loss of control of the helicopter.

On August 17, 2006, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued FAA Order 8000.89, Designation of Voluntary Disclosure Reporting Program (VDRP) Information as Protected from Public Disclosure under 14 CFR Part 193. There is a regulatory requirement to print the order in its entirety in the Federal Register. The entire order follows after the subtitle, SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.

Pursuant to Section 10(a)(2) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. 92-463, 5 U.S.C. App. 2), notice is hereby given of a meeting of the Commercial Space Transportation Advisory Committee (COMSTAC). The meeting will take place on Wednesday, October 25, 2006, starting at 8 a.m. at the Federal Aviation Administration Headquarters Building, 800 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC, in the Bessie Coleman Conference Center, located on the 2nd Floor. This will be the forty-fourth meeting of the COMSTAC. The proposed agenda for the meeting will feature information on recipients of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Commercial Orbital Transportation Services award; briefings on a study of the Commercial Space Launch Liability Risk-Sharing Regime and the environmental activities in FAA's Office of Commercial Space Transportation (AST); and an AST activities report. An agenda will be posted on the FAA Web site at https://ast.faa.gov/COMSTAC. Meetings of the COMSTAC Working Groups (Technology and Innovation, Reusable Launch Vehicle, Risk Management, and Launch Operations and Support) will be held on Tuesday, October 24, 2006. For specific information concerning the times and locations of the working group meetings, contact the Contact Person listed below. Individuals who plan to attend and need special assistance, such as sign language interpretation or other reasonable accommodations, should inform the Contact Person listed below in advance of the meeting.