Airworthiness Directives; General Electric Company CF34-1A, -3A, -3A1, -3A2, -3B, and -3B1 Turbofan Engines

[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 62 (Thursday, April 2, 2009)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 14929-14931]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-7417]



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Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 62 / Thursday, April 2, 2009 / Rules 
and Regulations

[[Page 14929]]



DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 39

[Docket No. FAA-2007-0419; Directorate Identifier 2007-NE-52-AD; 
Amendment 39-15871; AD 2009-07-12]
RIN 2120-AA64


Airworthiness Directives; General Electric Company CF34-1A, -3A, 
-3A1, -3A2, -3B, and -3B1 Turbofan Engines

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Final rule.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for 
General Electric Company (GE) CF34-1A, -3A, -3A1, -3A2, -3B, and -3B1 
turbofan engines with high-pressure (HP) rotor 4-step air balance 
piston stationary seals (4-step seals), part numbers (P/Ns) 4923T54G01, 
6019T90G03, 6037T99G01, 6037T99G02, and 6037T99G03, installed. This AD 
requires removing the 4-step seals and incorporating an 8-step seal at 
the next piece-part exposure. This AD results from the investigation of 
an airplane accident. Both engines experienced high-altitude flameout. 
Rotation of the HP rotors was not maintained during descent and the 
engines could not be restarted. We are issuing this AD to prevent the 
inability to restart both engines after flameout due to excessive 
friction of the 4-step seal, which could result in subsequent forced 
landing of the airplane.

DATES: This AD becomes effective May 7, 2009.

ADDRESSES: The Docket Operations office is located at Docket Management 
Facility, U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, 
SE., West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-
0001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kenneth Steeves, Aerospace Engineer, 
Engine Certification Office, Engine and Propeller Directorate, FAA, 12 
New England Executive Park, Burlington, MA 01803; e-mail: 
[email protected]; telephone: (781) 238-7765; fax: (781) 238-
7199.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The FAA proposed to amend 14 CFR part 39 
with a proposed AD. The proposed AD applies to GE CF34-1A, -3A, -3A1, -
3A2, -3B, and -3B1 turbofan engines with HP rotor 4-step air balance 
piston stationary seals (4-step seals), P/Ns 4923T54G01, 6019T90G03, 
6037T99G01, 6037T99G02, and 6037T99G03, installed. We published the 
proposed AD in the Federal Register on July 23, 2008 (73 FR 42725). 
That action proposed to require removing the 4-step seals and 
incorporating an 8-step seal at the next piece-part exposure.

Examining the AD Docket

    You may examine the AD docket on the Internet at http://www.regulations.gov; or in person at the Docket Operations office 
between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal 
holidays. The AD docket contains this AD, the regulatory evaluation, 
any comments received, and other information. The street address for 
the Docket Operations office (telephone (800) 647-5527) is provided in 
the ADDRESSES section. Comments will be available in the AD docket 
shortly after receipt.
    We provided the public the opportunity to participate in the 
development of this AD. We have considered the comments received.

Request To Reword the Reason for Engine Modification

    Air Wisconsin Airlines requests that the proposed AD be reworded to 
indicate that the desired reason for the engine modification is to 
enhance safety, and not as a result of the accident, as stated. 
Otherwise, the implication is that the CF34 engine does not meet the 
certification requirements, which, is inaccurate. The commenter also 
states that they believe the justification stated in the NPRM is a 
gross misrepresentation of the situation and events, which led up to 
the referenced accident. The commenter states that the failure of the 
engines to restart after the flameout event was a direct result of the 
flight crew failing to properly follow in-flight engine restart 
procedures. The commenter states that every engine is tested during the 
aircraft certification test flight process to ensure it meets the 
requirements of Federal Aviation Regulation 25.903.
    We do not agree. The proposed AD does not state that the 4-step 
seal was the cause of the accident, but that the proposed AD resulted 
from the investigation of the accident. The investigation found that 
under certain high-power, high-altitude engine shutdown events, 
interference between the rotating and stationary portions of the 4-step 
air balance piston seal can develop. We did not change the AD.

Request To Clarify ``Piece-Part Exposure'' Definition

    Air Wisconsin Airlines states that if the desire is to ensure 
engine modification at first exposure, then the requirement should 
indicate to accomplish the GE seal modification service bulletin at 
``piece-part-exposure''. Piece-part exposure should be defined as 
``removal of the combustion liner'' but no later than the first life-
limited part shop visit, since this is when the HP turbine life-limited 
parts (and typically the combustion liner) are removed. The commenter 
also states that the proposed AD compliance requirements are not 
entirely clear. The air balance piston seal is a non-serialized part, 
which makes it difficult to track and manage the part. The commenter 
states that they have observed a maintenance and overhaul shop that 
overlooked a particular requirement to incorporate a modification, 
because of an interpretation of what ``piece-part exposure'' was.
    We partially agree. We agree that the 4-step seal should be removed 
when the combustion liner is removed at piece-part exposure. We do not 
agree removal must be tied to the life-limited parts. We changed the 
piece-part exposure definition in the AD to state ``For the purposes of 
this AD, piece-part exposure means when the 4-step seal is removed from 
the engine or when the combustion liner is removed.''

[[Page 14930]]

Request To Change Incident Description Statement

    GE requests that we change the incident description statement of 
``Both engines experienced high-altitude flameouts'' which appears in 
the proposed AD Summary and Unsafe Condition, to ``As a result of a 
high-altitude airplane stall and upset, both engines experienced high-
power flameouts.'' The commenter states that this change is a more 
accurate representation of the event.
    We do not agree. As we have said previously the proposed AD does 
not state that the 4-step seal caused the accident. GE found during the 
course of the investigation that under certain high-power, high-
altitude engine shutdown events, interference between the rotating and 
stationary portions of the 4-step air balance piston seal can develop. 
We did not change the AD.

Request To Change the FAA's Reason for the AD Action

    GE requests that we change the FAA's reason statement for the AD 
action, from ``We are proposing this AD to prevent the inability to 
restart both engines after flameout due to excessive friction of the 4-
step seal, which could result in subsequent forced landing of the 
airplane'' to ``We are proposing this AD to enhance the ability to 
restart an engine after flameout by reducing the friction in the 4-step 
seal, which could result in subsequent forced landing of the 
airplane.'' The commenter states that this change would be a more 
accurate representation and support the assessment that this is a very 
rare occurrence and the recommended actions are not prevalent as proven 
by the category level of the relevant service bulletins.
    We do not agree. As already noted, the accident was not attributed 
to the friction of the 4-step seal. We have found an unsafe condition 
with the product. The proposed wording suggests the modification or 
replacement may not be adequate to address the inability to restart due 
to the friction. We did not change the AD.

Conclusion

    We have carefully reviewed the available data, including the 
comments received, and determined that air safety and the public 
interest require adopting the AD with the changes described previously. 
We have determined that these changes will neither increase the 
economic burden on any operator nor increase the scope of the AD.

Costs of Compliance

    We estimate that this AD will affect 2,722 CF34-1A, -3A, -3A1, -
3A2, -3B, and -3B1 turbofan engines installed on airplanes of U.S. 
registry. We estimate that approximately 2,450 engines with 4-step 
seals will incorporate the 8-step seal configuration at an overhaul 
shop visit at no additional cost. We estimate that approximately 272 
engines with 4-step seals will require additional work to modify the 
seal insert to the 8-step seal configuration. We estimate that it will 
take about 5 work-hours per engine to perform the seal modification, 
and that the average labor rate is $80 per work-hour. Based on these 
figures, we estimate the total cost of the AD to U.S. operators to be 
$108,800.

Authority for This Rulemaking

    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.
    We are 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.

Regulatory Findings

    We have determined that 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) Is not a ``significant rule'' under DOT Regulatory Policies and 
Procedures (44 FR 11034, February 26, 1979); 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.
    We prepared a summary of the costs to comply with this AD and 
placed it in the AD Docket. You may get a copy of this summary at the 
address listed under ADDRESSES.

List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 39

    Air transportation, Aircraft, Aviation safety, Safety.

Adoption of the Amendment

0
Accordingly, under the authority delegated to me by the Administrator, 
the Federal Aviation Administration amends 14 CFR part 39 as follows:

PART 39--AIRWORTHINESS DIRECTIVES

0
1. The authority citation for part 39 continues to read as follows:

    Authority:  49 U.S.C. 106(g), 40113, 44701.


Sec.  39.13  [Amended]

0
2. The FAA amends Sec.  39.13 by adding the following new airworthiness 
directive:

2009-07-12 General Electric Company: Amendment 39-15871. Docket No. 
FAA-2007-0419; Directorate Identifier 2007-NE-52-AD.

Effective Date

    (a) This airworthiness directive (AD) becomes effective May 7, 
2009.

Affected ADs

    (b) None.

Applicability

    (c) This AD applies to General Electric Company (GE) CF34-1A, -
3A, -3A1, -3A2, -3B, and -3B1 turbofan engines, with high-pressure 
(HP) rotor 4-step air balance piston stationary seals (4-step 
seals), part numbers (P/Ns) 4923T54G01, 6019T90G03, 6037T99G01, 
6037T99G02, and 6037T99G03, installed. These engines are installed 
on, but not limited to, Bombardier, Inc. airplane models CL-600-
2A12, -2B16, and -2B19.

Unsafe Condition

    (d) This AD results from the investigation of an airplane 
accident. Both engines experienced high-power flameout. Rotation of 
the HP rotors was not maintained during descent and the engines 
could not be restarted. We are issuing this AD to prevent the 
inability to restart both engines after flameout due to excessive 
friction of the 4-step seal, which could result in subsequent forced 
landing of the airplane.

Compliance

    (e) You are responsible for having the actions required by this 
AD performed at the next piece-part exposure after the effective 
date of this AD, unless the actions have already been done.
    (f) Remove the 4-step seals, P/Ns 4923T54G01, 6019T90G03, 
6037T99G01, 6037T99G02, and 6037T99G03.
    (g) Incorporate an 8-step seal, either by modifying the existing 
4-step seal to an 8-step seal, or by replacing it with an 8-step 
seal.

[[Page 14931]]

    (h) Information on modifying the seal and part number 
configuration charts, can be found in GE Service Bulletin (SB) No. 
CF34-AL S/B 72-0238, dated July 27, 2007 (CL-600-2B19), and SB No. 
CF34-BJ S/B 72-0217, dated July 27, 2007 (CL-600-2A12 and CL-600-
2B16).

Definition

    (i) For the purposes of this AD, piece-part exposure means when 
the 4-step seal is removed from the engine or when the combustion 
liner is removed.

Alternative Methods of Compliance

    (j) The Manager, Engine Certification Office, has the authority 
to approve alternative methods of compliance for this AD if 
requested using the procedures found in 14 CFR 39.19.

Related Information

    (k) Contact Kenneth Steeves, Aerospace Engineer, Engine 
Certification Office, Engine and Propeller Directorate, FAA, 12 New 
England Executive Park, Burlington, MA 01803; e-mail: 
[email protected]; telephone: (781) 238-7765, fax: (781) 238-
7199, for more information about this AD.

Material Incorporated by Reference

    (l) None.

    Issued in Burlington, Massachusetts, on March 26, 2009.
Peter A. White,
Assistant Manager, Engine and Propeller Directorate, Aircraft 
Certification Service.
[FR Doc. E9-7417 Filed 4-1-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-13-P

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