AD/BEECH 55/57 Fuselage Bulkheads FS 257.6 & FS 271.92 Cancelled (Cth)

AIRWORTHINESS DIRECTIVE

On the effective date specified below, and for the reasons set out in the background section, the CASA delegate whose signature appears below revokes Airworthiness Directive AD/BEECH 55/57.

Beechcraft 55, 58 and 95-55 (Baron) Series Aeroplanes

AD/BEECH 55/57 Fuselage Bulkheads FS 257.6 & FS 271.92 12/2009

Requirement:

CANCELLED.

This AD is cancelled on 19 November 2009.

Background:

This unique Australian AD issued in 1979, required an inspection/repair of possible cracks in the F.S. 257.6 and F.S. 271.92 bulkheads at the horizontal stabiliser stub spars in accordance with Beechcraft Service Instruction (SI) 0990, rather than a State of Design AD.

Compliance was within 100 hours TIS after 30 April 1979 and thereafter at intervals not exceeding 500 hours TIS or 1 year, whichever occurs first.

Revision I and II to the SI calls for regular schedule inspections of the bulkheads (100 hour, annual or progressive) whether or not a repair has been accomplished, which is in conflict with this AD.  Also, the Beechcraft 55 Maintenance Manual references the details of the SI in the 100 hour inspection schedule.

This AD requires repetitive inspections, not supported by a State of Design AD, and has been promulgated for a number of years with 11 reports of defects in the mandatory reporting system between 1982 and 2002.

In consideration of the number of reported defects, the period that this AD has been exposed to industry, the absence of a supporting State of Design AD, that the inspection of the empennage to fuselage attachments and surrounding structure are included in Schedule 5 (Section 1 paragraph (2) (g)), and that the manufacturers maintenance manual 100 hour inspection directly references Beechcraft SI No. 0990 Rev II, it is considered that normal maintenance inspection practices should be sufficient to meet the requirements of this unique AD.  This AD is therefore cancelled.

James Coyne
Delegate of the Civil Aviation Safety Authority

30 September 2009