Federal Aviation Administration November 16, 2010 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This action proposes to amend Class E airspace at Brunswick, GA, as the McKinnon NDB Non-Directional Beacon (NDB) has been decommissioned and new Standard Instrument Approach Procedures (SIAPs) have been developed at Malcolm-McKinnon Airport. The geographic coordinates for the airport also would be adjusted. Also, reference to the Glynco Jetport would be removed from the airspace designation. This action would enhance the safety and airspace management of Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) operations at the airport.

This notice announces the availability of seven revised consensus standards to previously accepted consensus standards relating to the provisions of the Sport Pilot and Light-Sport Aircraft rule issued July 16, 2004, and effective September 1, 2004. ASTM International Committee F37 on Light Sport Aircraft developed the revised standards with Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) participation. By this notice, the FAA finds the revised standards acceptable for certification of the specified aircraft under the provisions of the Sport Pilot and Light-Sport Aircraft rule.

This amendment revises an existing airworthiness directive (AD) for Bell Helicopter Textron Canada (BHTC) Model 206L, 206L-1, and 206L-3 helicopters with a certain part numbered tailboom installed, that currently requires a visual inspection of the tailboom skin in the areas around the nutplates and in the areas of the tailboom drive shaft cover retention clips for cracks and corrosion using a 10-power or higher magnifying glass until the tailboom is replaced with an airworthy tailboom. This action requires the same actions as the existing AD, but allows a longer interval for the repetitive inspections if the tailboom is modified to increase its structural integrity. Replacement with an airworthy tailboom other than a part- numbered tailboom affected by this amendment constitutes a terminating action for the requirements of this AD. This amendment is prompted by an accident and several reports of fatigue cracks in the tailboom skin in the areas around the nutplates for the tail rotor fairing and in the areas of the tail rotor drive shaft cover retention clips. The actions required by this AD are intended to prevent failure of the tailboom and subsequent loss of control of the helicopter.

We are adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for the Eurocopter Model AS332L2 helicopters. This AD results from a mandatory continuing airworthiness information (MCAI) AD issued by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), which is the Technical Agent for the Member States of the European Community. The MCAI AD states that a hard landing occurred during in-flight engine failure (one engine inoperative (OEI)) training. An examination revealed the failure of the right-hand main reduction gear module (module) freewheel unit due to excessive wear on some of its components. The MCAI AD prohibits engine failure OEI training with helicopters on which certain main gearbox (MGB) modules with certain freewheel shafts are installed and mandates the replacement of those modules. The actions are intended to prevent failure of certain freewheel units, loss of power to the main rotor system, and subsequent loss of control of the helicopter.