AD/B767/145 Amdt 1 - Airworthiness Limitations

Overview

The Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998, enacted by the Australian Government, play a crucial role in ensuring the safety of civil aviation in the country. These regulations are administered by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA), which issues airworthiness directives to address specific safety concerns. One such directive, AD/B767/145 Amendment 1, was issued to address the issue of fatigue cracking in certain principal structural elements of Boeing 767 series aircraft. This directive was necessitated by analysis of data that identified the need for specific initial inspection thresholds and repetitive inspection intervals. The policy objective behind this directive is to ensure that any potential unsafe conditions are detected and corrected promptly, thereby maintaining the airworthiness of the aircraft and safeguarding public safety. This amendment to the Airworthiness Directive follows a similar directive issued by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in the United States, which prompted CASA to expand the applicability of the original directive and incorporate a new revision into the Airworthiness Limitations Section of the Maintenance Planning Data Document. The directive became effective on 18 March 2004, following its notification in the Commonwealth of Australia Gazette on 25 February 2004. The CASA delegate, David Villiers, issued the directive under subregulation 39.1 (1) of the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998, ensuring that the required actions are taken in relation to the specified aircraft models and line numbers.

Scope and Application

The Airworthiness Directive AD/B767/145, issued under the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998 by a delegate of the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA), specifically applies to Boeing 767 series aeroplanes, including models 767-200, -300, -300F, and -400ER, with line numbers from 1 to 895. The directive mandates actions in accordance with the technical requirements outlined in FAA AD 2003-18-10 Amdt 39-13301 to address fatigue cracking of specific principal structural elements. This directive requires compliance with the instructions set forth in the requirement section, which references Maintenance Planning Data Documents D622T001 and D622T001-9, and must be undertaken at the time specified in the compliance section, with a revised effective date of 27 November 2003. This directive, prompted by an analysis of data identifying specific initial inspection thresholds and repetitive inspection intervals, aims to ensure the safety of these aircraft by detecting and correcting potential structural issues.

Key Provisions

The Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998, particularly Part 39 – 105, establish the framework through which the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) issues Airworthiness Directives (ADs). Specifically, section 39.1(1) of these Regulations empowers a CASA delegate to issue such directives to ensure the safety of aircraft. In this case, the delegate has revoked a previous AD, AD/B767/145, and issued a new one under this authority. The new AD pertains to the Boeing 767 series aeroplanes, specifically models 767-200, -300, -300F, and -400ER, with line numbers from 1 to 895. The new Airworthiness Directive mandates that specific actions must be taken to address identified unsafe conditions. These actions are to be performed in accordance with the technical requirements outlined in FAA AD 2003-18-10 Amdt 39-13301. The directive references Maintenance Planning Data Documents D622T001 and D622T001-9 for further guidance. The compliance with these requirements must be achieved by the date specified in the directive, with a revised effective date of 27 November 2003. The directive itself came into effect on 18 March 2004. Entities and parties governed by this AD, primarily aircraft operators and maintenance providers, must adhere to the specified actions and timelines. They are required to ensure that their maintenance and inspection procedures align with the FAA AD 2003-18-10 Amdt 39-13301, and update their Maintenance Planning Data Documents accordingly. Failure to comply with these requirements could lead to significant safety risks, as the directive was issued to address potential fatigue cracking in principal structural elements of the aircraft. Breaching the requirements of this Airworthiness Directive could have serious legal and safety consequences. The regulations do not explicitly state penalties within the text provided, but non-compliance with CASA directives typically results in enforcement actions which could include fines, grounding of aircraft, or other regulatory penalties. These actions are taken to ensure the safety and airworthiness of aircraft operating within Australian airspace.