Federal Aviation Administration December 27, 2023 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for all Embraer S.A. Model ERJ 190-400 airplanes. This AD was prompted by a report of unexpected wear on the wing hinge bearing assembly of the aileron surfaces found during the functional test of the aileron control system backlash. This AD requires repetitive inspections of the press-fitted bushings of the wing ailerons for migration and broken sealant, measurements of the distance between the aileron surfaces and hinge fittings, functional checks of the backlash of the wing aileron control system, and all applicable related investigative and corrective actions, as specified in an Ag[ecirc]ncia Nacional de Avia[ccedil][atilde]o Civil (ANAC) AD, which is incorporated by reference. The FAA is issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.

The FAA proposes to supersede Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2022-25-18, which applies to certain BAE Systems (Operations) Limited Model BAe 146 and Model Avro 146-RJ series airplanes. AD 2022-25-18 requires repetitive inspections for cracking of the main landing gear (MLG) side stay outer link and replacement if necessary. Since the FAA issued AD 2022-25-18, additional investigations of the causes of the cracking were conducted. This proposed AD would require a reduction of the repetitive visual inspection interval, provide optional repetitive special detailed inspections, accomplishing a one-off dimensional tolerance check and performing a repetitive lubrication of the MLG side stay outer link pivot, as specified in a United Kingdom (U.K.) Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) (U.K. CAA) AD, which is proposed for incorporation by reference (IBR). The FAA is proposing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.

This action extends the prohibition against certain flight operations in the Damascus Flight Information Region (FIR) (OSTT) by all: U.S. air carriers; U.S. commercial operators; persons exercising the privileges of an airman certificate issued by the FAA, except when such persons are operating U.S.-registered aircraft for a foreign air carrier; and operators of U.S.-registered civil aircraft, except when the operator of such aircraft is a foreign air carrier, for an additional five years, from December 30, 2023, until December 30, 2028. The FAA finds this action necessary to address significant safety-of- flight risks to U.S. civil aviation associated with the enduring complex conflict in Syria. The FAA also republishes the approval process and exemption information for this Special Federal Aviation Regulation (SFAR), consistent with other recently published flight prohibition SFARs.

The FAA is superseding Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2021-25-04 for certain Rolls-Royce Deutschland Ltd & Co KG (RRD) Model Trent 1000 engines. AD 2021-25-04 required operators to revise the airworthiness limitations section (ALS) of their existing approved continuous airworthiness maintenance program by incorporating the revised tasks of the applicable time limits manual (TLM) for each affected model turbofan engine. Since the FAA issued AD 2021-05-04, the manufacturer revised the TLM to introduce new or more restrictive tasks and limitations and associated thresholds and intervals for life-limited parts, which prompted this AD. This AD requires revising the ALS of the operator's existing approved engine maintenance or inspection program, as applicable, to incorporate new or more restrictive tasks and limitations and associated thresholds and intervals for life-limited parts, as specified in a European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) AD, which is incorporated by reference. The FAA is issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.