[Federal Register: August 8, 2003 (Volume 68, Number 153)]
[Notices]
[Page 47379-47380]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr08au03-117]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Aviation Administration
Notice of Intent To Designate as Abandoned Certain Type
Certificates Issued in the Restricted Category: International
Helicopters, H5S0; Smith Helicopters, H8NM; Invest In Opportunities,
Inc., H9WE; Helitech Corporation, H12WE; Pacific Aviation, H15WE; Joe
G. Marrs, H2SO; Glacier Helicopter, Inc., H21NM; Charles D. Linza,
H4WE; Sterling Aircraft Industries, H7WE; Heli Crane Corporation, HR-
35; Lassen Air, H11WE; U.S. Helicopter, R00009AT
AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.
ACTION: Notice of intent to designate certain type certificates issued
in the restricted category as abandoned; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: This notice announces the FAA's intent to designate each of
the above-cited Type Certificates issued in the Restricted Category
(RCTC) as abandoned. The FAA has been unable to locate these RCTC
holders concerning the continued airworthiness of the aircraft
certificated under their type certificates. The Federal Aviation
Regulations (FARs) require that type certificate (TC) holders report
certain failures, malfunctions, and defects to the FAA. The FARs also
require, upon request, that TC holders submit design changes to the FAA
that are necessary to correct any unsafe condition in their products.
The FAA has been unsuccessful in its attempt to contact each of the
above listed TC holders by certified mail, by telephone, and Internet
search. The FAA is responsible for surveillance of the RCTC holder's
ability to perform continued operational safety (COS) management and
oversight of each helicopter on their TC. This action is intended to
ensure that each individual RCTCed helicopter is under a TC that has
active COS management and oversight by a TC holder that can be subject
to periodic safety audits by the FAA.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before October 7, 2003.
ADDRESSES: Comments on this notice must be submitted to the Federal
Aviation Administration, Safety Management Group, ASW-112, Rotorcraft
Directorate, Fort Worth, Texas 76193-0112 or electronically to
Charles.C.Harrison@faa.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Charles Harrison, Aerospace Engineer,
FAA, Rotorcraft Directorate, Aircraft Certification Service, Fort
Worth, Texas 76193-0112, telephone (817) 222-5128, fax (817) 222-5961.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice is intended to inform the public
of the FAA's intent to designate certain Type Certificates issued in
the Restricted Category as being abandoned and that no additional
original airworthiness certificates will be issued against these type
certificates (TC) designated as abandoned. The FAA has been unable to
locate these TC holders concerning the continued airworthiness of the
aircraft certificated under their type certificates. Among other
regulatory requirements, 14 CFR 21.3 requires TC holders to report
certain failures, malfunctions, and defects to the FAA; and 14 CFR
21.99 requires, upon request, that TC holders submit design changes
that are necessary to correct any unsafe condition in their products.
To date, the FAA has been unsuccessful in its attempts to locate each
of the above listed TC holders by certified mail, by telephone, and
Internet search. The FAA is responsible for surveillance of the RCTC
holder's ability to perform continued operational safety (COS)
management and oversight of each helicopter on their TC. This action is
not intended as a surrender, suspension, revocation, or termination of
any TC as those terms are used in 14 CFR part 21. However, this action
is intended to ensure that each individual RCTCed helicopter is under a
TC that has active COS management and oversight by a TC holder that can
be subject to periodic safety audits by the FAA. Periodic safety audits
that the FAA performs on these TC holder's compliance with the FAA
safety regulations relating to continued airworthiness of their
helicopters cannot be accomplished if they cannot be located.
Interested parties are invited to provide comments, written data,
views, or arguments relating to this notice. Comments should be
submitted in duplicate to the address specified above. All comments
received on or before the closing date will be considered. All comments
received will be available in the docket for examination by interested
persons. Comments may be inspected at the office of the FAA, Rotorcraft
Safety Management Group, Rotorcraft Directorate, 4th Floor, 2601
Meacham Boulevard, Fort Worth, Texas, between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday
through Friday, except Federal holidays.
Background: Since the issuance of many of the RCTC's, there have
been a large number of significant service difficulties that have been
discovered on various models of surplus military aircraft certificated
in the restricted category, particularly under 14 CFR 21.25. Some of
these service difficulties have resulted in fatalities and led to the
discovery of various continued operational safety problems in this
fleet. Based on the numbers of significant service difficulties that
are being discovered in the RCTC helicopter fleet, the FAA conducted an
audit of the records of all known RCTC holders.
As part of this audit, the FAA elevated its efforts to contact and
review all of the RCTC holders for up-to-date information on their RCTC
including the number of helicopters, the serial numbers (S/N), and the
operators of those helicopters. This effort has revealed that there are
helicopters listed on the FAA Aircraft Registry for which there is no
COS management and oversight by the TC holder. The audit also revealed
that there are many RCTC's that have been sold and not properly
transferred to the new owner. Contacts with some RCTC holders also
revealed that there were some certificates that were intentionally not
managed for various reasons, however the RCTC was not surrendered. As
part of the audit, the FAA also discovered that several RCTC holders
could not be located and in some cases there were no active aircraft
listed in the FAA Registry for certain RCTC's and in other cases there
are active aircraft listed in the FAA Registry. The FAA attempted to
contact and locate all of these RCTC holders by phone, certified
letter, and Internet search. Several RCTC holders could not be located
and have never
[[Page 47380]]
contacted the FAA after obtaining the TC for their aircraft.
Discussion: The basis for issuance of a TC for a Restricted
Category helicopter not only includes various reports and data, it
requires that the applicant submit information about periodic
inspections and maintenance to assure the continued operational safety
of the helicopter. These TC holders are also required to meet certain
COS requirements regardless of who owns or operates the aircraft. The
FAA continues to monitor the safety performance of a helicopter design
even after the type design is approved and the aircraft is introduced
into service. This is accomplished through post-certification design
reviews, various safety reports and data, discussions with operators,
and reports from the TC holder.
COS oversight and management is a safety requirement for every
individual helicopter. This action is part of the FAA's continuing
effort to oversee TC holder COS management of the aircraft on their TCs
issued in the restricted category and to provide current information to
the public as to the status of these TCs.
The COS responsibilities of aircraft certificated by the FAA
require that the TC holder remain in contact with all owners and
operators of their aircraft in order to meet their regulatory safety
obligations. For example, 14 CFR 21.3 requires that the TC holder
report certain failures, malfunctions, or defects to the FAA within 24
hours after it has been determined to be a reportable occurrence. That
regulation also requires that if action is required to correct the
defect, the data necessary for the issuance of an appropriate
airworthiness directive shall also be submitted. In addition, the
regulations make it clear that Instructions for Continuing
Airworthiness, as well as appropriate approved design changes to a
type-certificated aircraft that will contribute to the safety of a
product, shall be made available to all owners and operators of that
product.
Since several TC holders cannot be located or contacted, the FAA
cannot perform its auditing oversight function and determine whether
the TC holder is in compliance with the regulatory requirements.
Therefore, the TC holders that can not be located and are not properly
managing the COS aspects of the helicopters listed on their TC are in
default of their FAA regulatory obligations. Hence, the FAA proposes to
``flag'' their TC and consider it abandoned. This notice is intended as
notification to the public that the FAA intends to designate those TCs
as abandoned and no additional original airworthiness certificates will
be issued against these TCs designated as abandoned. There are FAA
procedures in place to accommodate the transfer or surrender of a TC.
To properly transfer a TC, FAA order 8110.4B, dated April 24, 2000,
and 14 CFR 21.47 requires that the grantor, within thirty (30) days
after the transfer of the TC, shall notify in writing the appropriate
FAA Aircraft Certification Office. This notification must state the
name and address of the transferee or licensee, date of the
transaction, and in the case of a licensing agreement, the extent of
authority granted the licensee. The recipient of a transferred TC
accedes to all the privileges and all the responsibilities of the
transferring TC holder, which includes the continued airworthiness
responsibilities for all aircraft covered by that TC. Also, when a TC
is transferred, FAA Order 8110.4B, dated April 24, 2000, states that
the TC will be reissued. The proper procedures for transferring a TC
are contained in FAA Order 8110.4B, dated April 24, 2000.
The surrender of a TC for cancellation renders it ineffective. Upon
surrender of a TC for cancellation, all associated privileges, such as
those stated in 14 CFR 21.45, are extinguished. If a TC is surrendered
for cancellation, no further aircraft may be placed on the TC. However,
the TC surrender does not affect adversely the eligibility of any
aircraft to seek conformity to another TC or eligibility for issuance
of an airworthiness certificate if conformity can be established. To be
airworthy, an aircraft must conform to its TC (or Supplemental Type
Certificate), including its approved type design and applicable
airworthiness directives, and must be in a condition for safe operation
(49 USC 44704(d); 14 CFR 21.41).
In order to meet the COS requirements of the FAA regulations, any
owner or operator of a helicopter certificated under any of the cited
type certificates that the FAA designates as abandoned, is encouraged
to apply for their own type certificate in accordance with the
applicable FAA Regulations or they may, with concurrence from another
TC holder, conform their helicopter to that TC and add it to that COS-
managed TC.
Dated: Issued in Fort Worth, Texas on July 23, 2003.
Kim Smith,
Acting Manager, Rotorcraft Directorate, Aircraft Certification Service.
[FR Doc. 03-19527 Filed 8-7-03; 8:45 am]
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