Airworthiness Directives; Airbus SAS Airplanes

<RULE> DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION <SUBAGY>Federal Aviation Administration</SUBAGY> <CFR>14 CFR Part 39</CFR> <DEPDOC>[Docket No. FAA-2025-0475; Project Identifier MCAI-2024-00600-T; Amendment 39-23069; AD 2025-13-03]</DEPDOC> <RIN>RIN 2120-AA64</RIN> <SUBJECT>Airworthiness Directives; Airbus SAS Airplanes</SUBJECT> <HD SOURCE="HED">AGENCY:</HD> Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT. <HD SOURCE="HED">ACTION:</HD> Final rule. <SUM> <HD SOURCE="HED">SUMMARY:</HD> The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for all Airbus SAS Model A350-941 and -1041 airplanes. This AD was prompted by a determination that the applicable aircraft flight manual (AFM) was providing an incorrect value for maximum cumulative taxi time in freezing fog conditions. This AD requires revising the existing AFM to provide the flightcrew with normal procedures to follow under certain conditions. The FAA is issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products. </SUM> <EFFDATE> <HD SOURCE="HED">DATES:</HD> This AD is effective August 5, 2025. The Director of the Federal Register approved the incorporation by reference of a certain publication listed in this AD as of August 5, 2025. </EFFDATE> <HD SOURCE="HED">ADDRESSES:</HD> <E T="03">AD Docket:</E> You may examine the AD docket at <E T="03">regulations.gov</E> under Docket No. FAA-2025-0475; or in person at Docket Operations between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. The AD docket contains this final rule, the mandatory continuing airworthiness information (MCAI), any comments received, and other information. The address for Docket Operations is U.S. Department of Transportation, Docket Operations, M-30, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590. <E T="03">Material Incorporated by Reference:</E> • For European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) material identified in this AD, contact EASA, Konrad-Adenauer-Ufer 3, 50668 Cologne, Germany; telephone +49 221 8999 000; email <E T="03">ADs@easa.europa.eu.</E> You may find this material on the EASA website at <E T="03">ad.easa.europa.eu.</E> • You may view this material at the FAA, Airworthiness Products Section, Operational Safety Branch, 2200 South 216th St., Des Moines, WA. For information on the availability of this material at the FAA, call 206-231-3195. It is also available at <E T="03">regulations.gov</E> under Docket No. FAA-2025-0475. <FURINF> <HD SOURCE="HED">FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:</HD> James Clary, Aviation Safety Engineer, FAA, 2200 South 216th St., Des Moines, WA 98198; telephone: 817-222-5138; email: <E T="03">james.clary@faa.gov.</E> </FURINF> <SUPLINF> <HD SOURCE="HED">SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:</HD> <HD SOURCE="HD1">Background</HD> The FAA issued a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to amend 14 CFR part 39 by adding an AD that would apply to all Airbus SAS Model A350-941 and -1041 airplanes. The NPRM was published in the <E T="04">Federal Register</E> on March 26, 2025 (90 FR 13707). The NPRM was prompted by AD 2024-0190, dated October 10, 2024; corrected October 11, 2024, issued by EASA, which is the Technical Agent for the Member States of the European Union (EASA AD 2024-0190) (also referred to as “the MCAI”). The MCAI states the applicable AFM was providing an incorrect value for maximum cumulative taxi time in freezing fog conditions, which could lead to multiple engine surges in a critical flight phase and possibly result in loss of control of the airplane. In the NPRM, the FAA proposed to require revising the existing AFM to provide the flightcrew with normal procedures to follow under certain conditions, as specified in EASA AD 2024-0190. The FAA is issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products. You may examine the MCAI in the AD docket at <E T="03">regulations.gov</E> under Docket No. FAA-2025-0475. <HD SOURCE="HD1">Discussion of Final Airworthiness Directive</HD> <HD SOURCE="HD1">Comments</HD> The FAA received one comment from the Air Line Pilots Association, International, who supported the NPRM without change. <HD SOURCE="HD1">Conclusion</HD> These products have been approved by the civil aviation authority of another country and are approved for operation in the United States. Pursuant to the FAA's bilateral agreement with this State of Design Authority, that authority has notified the FAA of the unsafe condition described in the MCAI referenced above. The FAA reviewed the relevant data, considered any comments received, and determined that air safety requires adopting this AD as proposed. Accordingly, the FAA is issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on this product. This AD is adopted as proposed in the NPRM. <HD SOURCE="HD1">Material Incorporated by Reference Under 1 CFR Part 51</HD> The FAA reviewed EASA AD 2024-0190, which specifies procedures for an AFM amendment to correct the maximum cumulative taxi time in freezing fog conditions. This material is reasonably available because the interested parties have access to it through their normal course of business or by the means identified in the <E T="02">ADDRESSES</E> section. <HD SOURCE="HD1">Costs of Compliance</HD> The FAA estimates that this AD affects 32 airplanes of U.S. registry. The FAA estimates the following costs to comply with this AD: <GPOTABLE COLS="4" OPTS="L2,nj,i1" CDEF="s50,15C,15C,20C"> <TTITLE>Estimated Costs for Revising the AFM</TTITLE> <CHED H="1">Labor cost</CHED> <CHED H="1">Parts cost</CHED> <CHED H="1">Cost per product</CHED> <CHED H="1">Cost on U.S. operators</CHED> <ROW> <ENT I="01">1 work-hour × $85 per hour = $85</ENT> <ENT>$0</ENT> <ENT>$85</ENT> <ENT>$2,720</ENT> </ROW> </GPOTABLE> <HD SOURCE="HD1">Authority for This Rulemaking</HD> Title 49 of the United States Code specifies the FAA's authority to issue rules on aviation safety. Subtitle I, section 106, describes the authority of the FAA Administrator. Subtitle VII: Aviation Programs, describes in more detail the scope of the Agency's authority. The FAA is issuing this rulemaking under the authority described in Subtitle VII, Part A, Subpart III, Section 44701: General requirements. Under that section, Congress charges the FAA with promoting safe flight of civil aircraft in air commerce by prescribing regulations for practices, methods, and procedures the Administrator finds necessary for safety in air commerce. This regulation is within the scope of that authority because it addresses an unsafe condition that is likely to exist or develop on products identified in this rulemaking action. <HD SOURCE="HD1">Regulatory Findings</HD> This AD will not have federalism implications under Executive Order 13132. This AD will not have a substantial direct effect on the States, on the relationship between the national government and the States, or on the distribution of power and responsibilities among the various levels of government. For the reasons discussed above, I certify that this AD: (1) Is not a “significant regulatory action” under Executive Order 12866, (2) Will not affect intrastate aviation in Alaska, and (3) Will not have a significant economic impact, positive or negative, on a substantial number of small entities under the criteria of the Regulatory Flexibility Act. <LSTSUB> <HD SOURCE="HED">List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 39</HD> Air transportation, Aircraft, Aviation safety, Incorporation by reference, Safety. </LSTSUB> <HD SOURCE="HD1">The Amendment</HD> Accordingly, under the authority delegated to me by the Administrator, the FAA amends 14 CFR part 39 as follows: <HD SOURCE="HED">PART 39—AIRWORTHINESS DIRECTIVES</HD> <REGTEXT TITLE="14" PART="39"> 1. The authority citation for part 39 continues to read as follows: <HD SOURCE="HED">Authority:</HD> 49 U.S.C. 106(g), 40113, 44701. </REGTEXT> <SECTION> <SECTNO>§ 39.13</SECTNO> <SUBJECT>[Amended]</SUBJECT> </SECTION> <REGTEXT TITLE="14" PART="39"> 2. The FAA amends § 39.13 by adding the following new airworthiness directive: <EXTRACT> <FP SOURCE="FP-2"> <E T="04">2025-13-03 Airbus SAS:</E> Amendment 39-23069; Docket No. FAA-2025-0475; Project Identifier MCAI-2024-00600-T. </FP> <HD SOURCE="HD1">(a) Effective Date</HD> This airworthiness directive (AD) is effective August 5, 2025. <HD SOURCE="HD1">(b) Affected ADs</HD> None. <HD SOURCE="HD1">(c) Applicability</HD> This AD applies to all Airbus SAS Model A350-941 and -1041 airplanes, certificated in any category. <HD SOURCE="HD1">(d) Subject</HD> Air Transport Association (ATA) of America Code 71, Powerplant. <HD SOURCE="HD1">(e) Unsafe Condition</HD> This AD was prompted by a determination that the applicable aircraft flight manual (AFM) was providing an incorrect value for maximum cumulative taxi time in freezing fog conditions. The FAA is issuing this AD to address the incorrect maximum cumulative taxi time in freezing fog conditions. The unsafe condition, if not addressed, could lead to multiple engine surges in a critical flight phase and result in loss of control of the airplane. <HD SOURCE="HD1">(f) Compliance</HD> Comply with this AD within the compliance times specified, unless already done. <HD SOURCE="HD1">(g) Requirements</HD> Except as specified in paragraph (h) of this AD: Comply with all required actions and compliance times specified in, and in accordance with, European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) AD 2024-0190, dated October 10, 2024; corrected October 11, 2024 (EASA AD 2024-0190). <HD SOURCE="HD1">(h) Exceptions to EASA AD 2024-0190</HD> (1) Where EASA AD 2024-0190 refers to its effective date, this AD requires using the effective date of this AD. (2) Where paragraph (1) of EASA AD 2024-0190 specifies “implement the AFM DU revision”, this AD requires replacing that text with “revise th ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ Preview showing 10k of 14k characters. 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