Department of Transportation November 20, 2007 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This document announces a reopening of the comment period for the above-referenced NPRM. The NPRM proposed the adoption of a new airworthiness directive for all Airbus Model A300, A310, and A300-600 series airplanes. That NPRM invites comments concerning the proposed requirements for revising the Emergency Procedures sections of the airplane flight manuals to advise the flightcrew of new procedures for emergency evacuation. This reopening of the comment period is necessary to provide additional opportunity for public comment on the proposed requirements of that NPRM.

This document announces a reopening of the comment period for the above-referenced NPRM. The NPRM proposed the adoption of a new airworthiness directive for all BAE Systems (Operations) Limited Model BAe 146 and Model Avro 146-RJ airplanes. That NPRM invites comments concerning the proposed requirements for repetitive detailed visual inspections for corrosion, pitted fasteners, or pillowing of the APU heat shield and surrounding skin and, if applicable, removal of the heat shield and repair. This reopening of the comment period is necessary to provide additional opportunity for public comment on the proposed requirements of that NPRM.

This document publishes in the Federal Register an amendment adopting Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2007-19-53, which was sent previously to all known U.S. owners and operators of the specified Bell Helicopter Textron, Inc. (BHTI) model helicopters by individual letters. This AD requires replacing each affected tail rotor blade (blade) with an airworthy blade with a serial number not listed in the applicability of this AD. This AD is prompted by three incidents in which blade tip weights were slung from the blades during flight causing significant vibration. The actions specified by this AD are intended to prevent loss of a blade tip weight, loss of a blade, and subsequent loss of control of the helicopter.

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain Cessna Aircraft Company (Cessna) Model 525B airplanes. This AD requires you to incorporate electrical power relay circuit protection kit part number (P/N) SB525B-24-02. This AD results from both the need to protect aircraft wiring left unprotected in the original design and a report of a Model 525B airplane experiencing in-flight loss of numerous systems, tripped circuit breakers, and burned wiring adjacent to the power distribution panel. We are issuing this AD to correct an incorrect wiring installation and to provide short-circuit protection for all wiring from the aircraft power distribution system. This condition could result in burned wiring and loss of various aircraft electrical systems.

We are adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for the products listed above. This AD results from mandatory continuing airworthiness information (MCAI) issued by an aviation authority of another country to identify and correct an unsafe condition on an aviation product. The MCAI describes the unsafe condition as:

The Department of Transportation (DOT or Department) is seeking comment on whether it should adopt a rule to enhance airline passenger protections in the following seven ways: require carriers to adopt contingency plans for lengthy tarmac delays and incorporate them in their contracts of carriage, require carriers to respond to consumer problems, deem operating a chronically delayed flight to be unfair and deceptive, require carriers to publish delay data, require carriers to publish complaint data, require on-time performance reporting for international flights, and require carriers to audit their compliance with their customer service plans. We are proposing that most of these measures cover certificated or commuter air carriers that operate domestic scheduled passenger service using any aircraft with more than 30 passenger seats. We are proposing that one measure cover the largest U.S. and foreign carriers and that two other measures cover the largest U.S. carriers.