Federal Aviation Administration – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The FAA is superseding Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2020-24- 04, which applied to all The Boeing Company Model 787-8, 787-9, and 787-10 airplanes. AD 2020-24-04 required revising the existing airplane flight manual (AFM) to incorporate procedures for an approach with a localizer-based navigation aid, monitoring localizer raw data, calling out any significant deviations, and performing an immediate go around under certain conditions. This AD was prompted by the development of a modification to address the previously identified unsafe condition, and the identification of a separate unsafe condition where misleading vertical flight director (FD) guidance can be presented to the flightcrew under certain conditions. This AD continues to require the actions specified in AD 2020-24-04 and requires installing applicable software updates to the flight control module (FCM). Using updated software terminates the retained AFM requirement in this AD. The FAA is issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.

This action proposes to modify the Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface and remove the Class E airspace extending upward from 1200 feet above the surface at Klawock Airport, Klawock, AK. Additionally, this action proposes administrative amendments to update the airport's existing Class E airspace legal description. These actions would support the safety and management of instrument flight rules (IFR) operations at the airport.

The FAA proposes to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) for all Bombardier, Inc., Model BD-100-1A10 airplanes. This proposed AD was prompted by reports from the supplier that some overheat detection sensing elements of the bleed air leak detection system were manufactured with insufficient salt fill, which can result in an inability to detect hot bleed air leaks. This proposed AD would require revising the existing airplane flight manual (AFM) to include procedures to prevent takeoff with an active bleed air leak annunciated while on the ground. This proposed AD would also require testing the overheat detection sensing elements, marking each serviceable sensing element with a witness mark, and replacing each nonserviceable part with a serviceable part. This proposed AD would also prohibit the installation of affected parts. The FAA is proposing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.

The FAA is superseding Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2023-04- 16, which applied to certain Dassault Aviation Model FALCON 900EX airplanes. AD 2023-04-16 required revising the existing maintenance or inspection program, as applicable, to incorporate new or more restrictive airworthiness limitations. Since the FAA issued AD 2023-04- 16, the FAA has determined that new or more restrictive airworthiness limitations are necessary. This AD continues to require the actions in AD 2023-04-16, and also requires revising the existing maintenance or inspection program, as applicable, to incorporate new or more restrictive airworthiness limitations, 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.

The FAA is correcting a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that published in the Federal Register. The NPRM proposed to issue an airworthiness directive (AD) that would apply to all Rolls-Royce Deutschland Ltd & Co KG (RRD) Model RB211-Trent 800 engines. As published, the docket number referenced throughout the NPRM is incorrect. This document corrects that error. In all other respects, the original document remains the same; however, for clarity, the FAA is republishing the entire proposed rule in the Federal Register.

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for all Leonardo S.p.a. Model A119 and AW119 MKII helicopters. This AD was prompted by a report of an electrical failure of a starter-generator caused by a ruptured drive shaft. This AD requires visually inspecting the drive shaft of an affected starter-generator and depending on the results, performing a dye penetrant inspection. Depending on the results of the dye penetrant inspection, this AD requires replacing the starter-generator, as specified in a European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) AD, which is incorporated by reference (IBR). The FAA is issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.

The FAA proposes to amend its Passenger Facility Charge regulations to implement changes to an existing pilot program that resides within the Passenger Facility Charge program. This Congressionally mandated pilot program simplifies the process for public agencies controlling commercial service airports to obtain FAA authority to impose and use Passenger Facility Charges to fund airport development projects. The FAA also proposes to reaffirm existing program requirements and update or remove obsolete references within the Passenger Facility Charge regulations. Further, this proposed action removes certain Passenger Facility Charge program requirements eliminated in the 2018 FAA reauthorization legislation.

The FAA proposes to supersede Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2019-16-05, which applies to all The Boeing Company Model 777 airplanes. AD 2019-16-05 requires an identification of the part number, and if applicable the serial number, of the Captain's and First Officer's seats, and applicable on-condition actions for affected seats. Since the FAA issued AD 2019-16-05, the FAA has discovered that certain seat part numbers had been inadvertently omitted from the inspection requirements of AD 2019-16-05. This proposed AD would retain the requirements of AD 2019-16-05 and would add inspection of the previously omitted part numbers. The FAA is proposing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.

This action amends Class D and Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface for Flagler Executive Airport, Palm Coast, FL. This action will increase the radius, update the airport's geographic coordinates, and amend verbiage in the Class D description.

This action amends United States Area Navigation (RNAV) route Q-445 by removing segments of the route from the PAACK, NC, waypoint (WP) to the SHAUP, OA, WP (i.e., OA means Offshore Atlantic). This amendment is required because those route segments are unused due to multiple other routes in the same area.

To limit the growth of orbital debris, the FAA proposes to require that upper stages of commercial launch vehicles and other components resulting from launch or reentry be removed from orbit within 25 years after launch, either through atmospheric disposal or maneuver to an acceptable disposal orbit. Any artificial object left in orbit around the Earth which no longer serves a useful purpose can become a debris hazard in space. Orbital debris is all such human- generated debris in Earth orbit that is greater than 5 millimeters (mm) in any dimension. Collisions between and with orbital debris are a growing concern because prior to the establishment of the Inter-Agency Space Debris Coordination Committee (IADC) practices allowed these objects to accumulate in Earth orbit. Additionally, an increasing number of launch operators are launching assets into space at greater rates. If left unchecked, this accumulation can clutter useful orbits and present a hazard to operations on-orbit. This proposed rule would reduce the amount of additional debris created, as well as limit potential collisions with functional spacecraft and other debris already on-orbit.

The FAA proposes to supersede Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2009-01-02, which applies to certain Boeing Model 737-600, -700, -700C, -800, and -900 series airplanes. AD 2009-01-02 requires an inspection of frames between body station (BS) 360 and BS 907 to determine if certain support brackets of the air conditioning (A/C) outlet extrusions are installed, inspections for cracking of the frames around the attachment holes of the subject brackets, and repair if necessary. AD 2009-01-02 also requires installing new, improved fittings for all support brackets of the A/C outlet extrusions between BS 360 and BS 907. Since the FAA issued AD 2009-01-02, the agency determined that certain repairs might develop fatigue cracks that could result in the inability of the frame to sustain limit load and therefore must be inspected. This proposed AD would continue to require the actions specified in AD 2009-01-02 and would also require repetitive inspections for cracking of certain repairs and repair if necessary. The FAA is proposing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.

This action removes Very High Frequency (VHF) Omnidirectional Range (VOR) Federal airway V-314 in Maine because the route segments in Canada were cancelled by NAV CANADA. As a result, the remaining segments in Maine are no longer required for air traffic control (ATC) purposes.

This rule establishes, amends, suspends, or removes Standard Instrument Approach Procedures (SIAPS) and associated Takeoff Minimums and Obstacle Departure procedures (ODPs) for operations at certain airports. These regulatory actions are needed because of the adoption of new or revised criteria, or because of changes occurring in the National Airspace System, such as the commissioning of new navigational facilities, adding new obstacles, or changing air traffic requirements. These changes are designed to provide safe and efficient use of the navigable airspace and to promote safe flight operations under instrument flight rules at the affected airports.

This action amends the Very High Frequency Omnidirectional Range (VOR) Federal airway V-388 between the Paradise, CA (PDZ), VOR/ Tactical Air Navigation (VORTAC) and the Palm Springs, CA (PSP), VORTAC navigational aids.

The FAA is superseding Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2021-26-11 for all Rolls-Royce Deutschland Ltd. & Co. KG (RRD) Model RB211-Trent 875-17, 877-17, 884-17, 884B-17, 892-17, 892B-17, and 895-17 engines. AD 2021-26-11 required replacing the affected fuel pump on at least one affected engine. Since the FAA issued AD 2021-26-11, the FAA has determined that replacing all affected fuel pumps on all installed engines is necessary to address the unsafe condition. This AD was prompted by reports of single-engine events caused by water contamination, which led to corrosion on the fuel pump that resulted in loss of engine thrust. This AD requires replacing the affected fuel pump on at least one engine before further flight and replacing all affected fuel pumps within a specified compliance time. This AD would also prohibit installing any affected engine onto any airplane or any affected fuel pump onto any engine, as specified in a European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) AD, which is incorporated by reference (IBR). The FAA is issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.

This action amends United States Area Navigation (RNAV) route T-223 in the vicinity of Cape Newenham, AK, in support of a large and comprehensive T-route modernization project for the state of Alaska.

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for all Airbus SAS Model A330-200 series; A330-200 Freighter series; A330-300 series; A330-800 series; A330-900 series; A340-200 series; and A340-300 series airplanes. This AD was prompted by reports of cracks found in the scroll housing assembly of Honeywell GTCP331-350 auxiliary power units (APUs). This AD requires replacing each affected APU or re- identifying certain APU scroll housing assemblies, and prohibits the installation of affected parts under certain conditions, 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.

This action establishes Area Navigation (RNAV) routes T-469 and T-472 in the southwest United States. The new RNAV routes expand the availability of the enroute structure and provide additional RNAV routing within the National Airspace System (NAS) in support of transitioning it from ground-based to satellite-based navigation.

This action revokes Very High Frequency Omnidirectional Range (VOR) Federal airway V-456 and the Mankato, MN, Low Altitude Reporting Point. The FAA is taking this action due to the planned decommissioning of the VOR portion of the Mankato, MN (MKT), VOR/Distance Measuring Equipment (VOR/DME) navigational aid (NAVAID). The Mankato VOR is being decommissioned in support of the FAA's VOR Minimum Operational Network (MON) program.

This action amends Very High Frequency Omnidirectional Range (VOR) Federal airways V-469 and V-501, and revokes V-474. The FAA is taking this action due to the planned decommissioning of the VOR portion of the St. Thomas, PA (THS), VOR/Tactical Air Navigation (VORTAC) navigational aid (NAVAID). The St. Thomas VOR is being decommissioned in support of the FAA's VOR Minimum Operational Network (MON) program.

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for all The Boeing Company Model 737-600, -700, -700C, -800, -900, and -900ER series airplanes. This AD was prompted by a report indicating fuselage skin lap splice cracking was found between stations (STA) 767 and STA 787, just below S-14R fuselage skin lap splice, where a lower skin panel buckle intersected the upper skin of the lap splice. Cracking was also found just below S-14R between STA 747 and STA 767. This AD requires an inspection for any repair at certain skin lap splices at S- 4, S-14, and S-24 and depending on the configuration, repetitive inspections for buckling, wrinkling, or bulging at affected skin lap splices and repair, repetitive inspections for cracking at affected locations common to fuselage skin on the left and right sides and repair, and alternative inspections and on-condition actions. The FAA is issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.

On December 7, 2021, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) published a final rule in the Federal Register to extend the Special Federal Aviation Regulation (SFAR) prohibiting certain flights in the specified areas of the Sanaa Flight Information Region (FIR) (OYSC) 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. Subsequently, the FAA became aware that the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) amended waypoints the FAA uses to demarcate the boundary between the airspace in which U.S. operators are prohibited from conducting operations and the airspace in which U.S. operators are permitted to operate. The FAA is publishing this technical amendment to update its regulations to reflect the current waypoint names and locations.

The FAA has accepted for review the application for Avon Park Executive Airport's (AVO) participation in the Airport Investment Partnership Program (AIPP), under the terms and conditions of the AIPP and the FAA's Notice of AIPP Application Procedures. The filing date for AVO's application is noted as July 7, 2023. The City of Avon Park, the airport sponsor, selected Florida Airport Management as the private operator and negotiated a draft agreement for FAA review. The FAA has determined that the final application is substantially complete and accepted for review. The determination that the application is substantially complete results in the commencement of the FAA's review and is not an approval or disapproval of the proposed privatization application. The FAA is seeking information and comments from interested parties on the final application. The FAA will review the application, public comments, and any other relevant additional submission by the applicant or the public and issue a decision approving or disapproving the application. The AVO application is available for public review at https://www.regulations.gov. The docket number is FAA Docket Number 2023-1724.

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain Vulcanair S.p.A. Model V1.0 airplanes. This AD results from mandatory continuing airworthiness information (MCAI) originated by an aviation authority of another country to identify and correct an unsafe condition on an aviation product. The MCAI identifies the unsafe condition as corrosion on the lower fuselage truss. This AD requires a detailed visual inspection of the right-hand (RH) and left-hand (LH) lower rear attachments of the fuselage truss for corrosion, a tactile inspection of the lower rear attachments for missing sealant, and a general visual inspection of the lower fuselage truss welded pipes for corrosion and the related rivets for missing stems and, depending on findings, additional inspections and actions (including a tap test) and applicable corrective actions. The FAA is issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.