AD/APU/22 Amdt 1 APS 3200 APU Software Upgrade

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Legislation au F2021L00284 In force Legislative Instrument

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Explanatory Statement

Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998

AD/APU/22 Amdt 1 — APS 3200 APU Software Upgrade

Legislation

Under section 98 of the Civil Aviation Act 1988 (the Act), the Governor-General may make regulations for the purpose of carrying out and giving effect to the provisions of the Convention on International Civil Aviation relating to safety, amongst other things. Under regulation 39.001 of the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998 (CASR), the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) may issue an airworthiness directive (AD) for a kind of aircraft or aeronautical product. Under subsections 98 (5B) and (5BA) of the Act, an AD is a legislative instrument unless it is expressed to apply in relation to a particular person, a particular aircraft or a particular aeronautical product.

Subsection 98 (5D) of the Act provides that a legislative instrument made under the Act or the regulations may apply, adopt or incorporate any matter contained in any instrument or other writing as in force or existing from time to time, even if the other instrument or writing does not yet exist when the legislative instrument is made.

Under subsection 33 (3) of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901, where an Act confers a power to make, grant or issue any instrument of a legislative or administrative character (including rules, regulations or by-laws), the power shall be construed as including a power exercisable in the like manner and subject to the like conditions (if any) to repeal, rescind, revoke, amend, or vary any such instrument.

Under Annex 8 to the Convention on International Civil Aviation, the State of Design has overall responsibility for continuing airworthiness of an aircraft type, and must provide any information necessary to ensure the continuing airworthiness of a type to appropriate States of Registry. ADs (and their equivalents) are the most common form of continuing airworthiness information, and are issued by most International Civil Aviation Organization Contracting States.

The State of Registry of an individual aircraft is responsible for its continuing airworthiness. Under Annex 8, the State of Registry must develop or adopt requirements to ensure the continuing airworthiness of aircraft. When a foreign State of Design issued an AD before 1 October 2009 for a type of aircraft on the Australian Register, CASA, as Australia’s national airworthiness authority, must assess that information and, if appropriate, issue an Australian AD to mandate the requirements of the foreign State of Design. AD/APU/22 Amdt 1 applies to the Hamilton Sundstrand APS 3200 auxiliary power units (APU).

The French Directorate General for Civil Aviation (DGAC) issued AD 96 293(B) R1 affecting Hamilton Sundstrand APS 3200 APUs in 1996. The United States of America Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) which is the State of Design for these APUs had not yet taken corrective action to address the unsafe condition. Consequently, CASA issued AD/APU/22 to mandate the requirements of French DGAC AD AD 96 293(B) R1. The FAA subsequently issued AD 97-03-06 to correct the unsafe condition. As a result of a request from industry, CASA has issued AD/APU/22 Amdt 1 to replace reference to the DGAC AD with reference to the FAA AD as the FAA are the state of design for the affected APUs. The AD includes a statement that actions previously carried out in accordance with the DGAC AD constitute compliance with equivalent actions required by the FAA AD. This AD repeals and replaces the previous AD on this subject.

Documents Incorporated by Reference

The AD incorporates by reference FAA AD 97-03-06 which is freely available on the FAA website at the following internet address:

https://rgl.faa.gov/Regulatory_and_Guidance_Library/rgad.nsf/0/17E219BBC64B019086256A40005AE13C?OpenDocument&Highlight=97-03-06

Consultation

This AD is being made at the request of industry. As this AD amendment is of a minor or machinery nature and does not substantially alter existing arrangements apart from replacing reference to a French DGAC AD with reference to an equivalent FAA AD requiring the same corrective actions, while providing credit for actions previously taken in accordance with the French DGAC AD, it is CASA’s view that it was not necessary or appropriate to undertake any further consultation under section 17 of the Legislation Act 2003.

Regulation Impact Statement

A Regulation Impact Statement (RIS) is not required because ADs are covered by a standing agreement between CASA and the Office of Best Practice Regulation under which a RIS is not required for ADs (OBPR id. 14507).

Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights

A Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights is at Attachment 1.

Making and commencement

The instrument has been made by a delegate of CASA relying on the power of delegation under subregulation 11.260 (1) of CASR and subsection 94 (1) of the Act.

The instrument commences on 31 March 2021.

[Instrument number AD/APU/22 Amdt 1]


Attachment 1

Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights

Prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the
Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011

AD/APU/22 Amdt 1 — APS 3200 APU Software Upgrade

This legislative instrument is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.

Overview of the legislative instrument

The French Directorate General for Civil Aviation (DGAC) issued AD 96 293(B) R1 affecting Hamilton Sundstrand APS 3200 APUs in 1996. The United States of America Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) which is the State of Design for these APUs had not yet taken corrective action to address the unsafe condition. Consequently, CASA issued AD/APU/22 to mandate the requirements of French DGAC AD AD 96 293(B) R1. The FAA subsequently issued AD 97-03-06 to correct the unsafe condition. As a result of a request from industry, CASA has issued AD/APU/22 Amdt 1 to replace reference to the DGAC AD with reference to the FAA AD as the FAA are the state of design for the affected APUs. The AD includes a statement that actions previously carried out in accordance with the DGAC AD constitute compliance with equivalent actions required by the FAA AD.

The primary purpose of this legislative instrument is to update AD/APU/22 to reference the correct state of design AD.

Human rights implications

This legislative instrument does not engage any of the applicable rights or freedoms.

Conclusion

This legislative instrument is compatible with human rights as it does not raise any human rights issues.

Civil Aviation Safety Authority

Overview

The Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998, amended by AD/APU/22 Amdt 1, were enacted to address an unsafe condition identified in the Hamilton Sundstrand APS 3200 auxiliary power units (APU). The French Directorate General for Civil Aviation (DGAC) issued an airworthiness directive (AD) in 1996 to address this condition, but the United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), being the State of Design for the APUs, had not yet issued a corrective AD. Consequently, the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) issued AD/APU/22 to mandate the requirements of the French DGAC AD. Following this, the FAA issued AD 97-03-06 to address the condition. In response to a request from industry, CASA issued AD/APU/22 Amdt 1 to update the AD by replacing the reference to the DGAC AD with the FAA AD, while crediting actions previously taken in accordance with the DGAC AD as compliant with the FAA AD. The policy objective is to ensure the continuing airworthiness of aircraft by aligning with the requirements of the correct state of design AD. This legislative instrument was made under the authority of the Civil Aviation Act 1988 and the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998, and it commenced on 31 March 2021.

Scope and Application

The Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998 Amendment (APS 3200 APU Software Upgrade) 2021 applies to the Hamilton Sundstrand APS 3200 auxiliary power units (APU) and is made under the authority of the Civil Aviation Act 1988 and the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998. This amendment replaces the previously issued Airworthiness Directive AD/APU/22 with AD/APU/22 Amdt 1, addressing the same safety concerns identified in the original directive but updating the referenced AD to the one issued by the United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), as the FAA is the State of Design for these APUs. The amendment clarifies that actions taken in compliance with the original French DGAC AD 96 293(B) R1 are considered equivalent to actions required by the FAA AD 97-03-06. The amendment applies nationally across Australia and extends to all aircraft registered in Australia that use the specified APUs, ensuring compliance with international standards of airworthiness. There are no stated exclusions or exemptions in this amendment, and it does not establish any new thresholds. The amendment was made following a request from industry, and no further consultation was deemed necessary by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) due to its minor nature and alignment with existing arrangements. The instrument commenced on 31 March 2021.

Key Provisions

The Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998 Amendment (APS 3200 APU Software Upgrade) 2021 (AD/APU/22 Amdt 1) amends Airworthiness Directive (AD) AD/APU/22 to update the reference from a French civil aviation authority airworthiness directive to an equivalent United States Federal Aviation Administration airworthiness directive. The main operative sections of this amendment are sections 98 and 39.001 of the Civil Aviation Act 1988 and regulation 39.001 of the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998. Section 98 of the Act allows for the creation of regulations to ensure compliance with international safety standards, while section 39.001 of the CASR enables the issuance of ADs by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) for specific aircraft or aeronautical products. This amendment replaces the previous AD that referenced a French directive with one that references a US directive, ensuring alignment with the State of Design for the auxiliary power units (APU) in question. The AD imposes obligations on aircraft operators and owners to comply with the specified requirements for the APS 3200 APU software upgrade. This includes conducting necessary inspections, repairs, or modifications to ensure the airworthiness of the APUs in accordance with the updated AD. The AD also mandates that any actions previously taken in compliance with the previous French directive are considered compliant with the requirements of the new US directive, providing continuity for operators who have already implemented corrective measures. There are no specific offences, penalties, or civil/criminal consequences outlined in this amendment itself, as it is primarily an administrative update to an existing AD. However, non-compliance with ADs generally may lead to enforcement actions by CASA, including the issuance of compliance orders, fines, or other penalties as stipulated in the Civil Aviation Act 1988 and Civil Aviation Regulations. The penalties for non-compliance with ADs can include significant financial penalties and potential grounding of non-compliant aircraft, depending on the severity and impact of the non-compliance. Operators are required to ensure that their aircraft meet all relevant airworthiness directives to avoid such consequences.

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Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation at 26 August 2026. For the latest information on Australian Government law please go to https://www.legislation.gov.au.