AD/ROBIN/36 Amdt 1 Air Intake By-pass Flap

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Legislation au F2019L00319 In force Legislative Instrument

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Explanatory Statement

Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998

AD/ROBIN/36 Amdt 1 — Air Intake By-pass Flap

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), 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.

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/ROBIN/36 Amdt 1 applies to the Alpha Aviation HR200, R2100, R2112, R2120 and R2160 series aircraft.

The French Directorate General for Civil Aviation (DGAC) issued AD 2001-036(A) affecting various Robin Aviation series aeroplanes in 2001. France was at the time the State of Design for these aircraft types. CASA subsequently issued AD/ROBIN/36 to mandate the requirements of DGAC AD 2001-036(A). Since 2001, Alpha Aviation in New Zealand have taken responsibility for some of these aircraft types and consequently New Zealand is now the State of Design for some types affected by AD/ROBIN/36. In 2006 the New Zealand Civil Aviation Authority (NZ CAA) issued AD DCA/R2000/31 which mirrored French DGAC AD 2001-036(A) and in 2007 made a minor amendment to the applicability by issuing AD DCA/R2000/31A. As a result of a review of AD/ROBIN/36 CASA found that in 2014 the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), who now act on behalf of France as the State of Design, issued AD 2014-0225 which retained the requirements of DGAC AD 2001-036(A) but introduced terminating action for the ongoing inspections via a modification of the affected part. The EASA AD was automatically accepted by CASA under Part 39 of CASR.

 

As the modification required by the EASA AD is not available for those aircraft for which New Zealand is the State of Design (Alpha Aviation versions) CASA has issued AD/ROBIN/36 Amdt 1 to delete from the applicability, those aircraft which are now covered by EASA AD 2014-0225, to replace reference to DGAC 2001-036(A) with reference to NZ CAA AD DCA/R2000/31A and to provide further background information in relation to the unsafe condition.

 

Following the issue of AD/ROBIN/36 Amdt 1, operators of Alpha Aviation variants of the applicable aircraft will comply with AD/ROBIN/36 Amdt 1 while operators of CEAPR (formerly Robin Aviation) variants will comply with EASA AD 2014-0225. This AD repeals and replaces the previous AD on this subject.

Documents Incorporated by Reference

Robin Aviation Service Bulletin No. 174 dated 29 November 2000 provides instructions for the inspection of the air intake heat box by-pass flap for Alpha Aviation HR200, R2100, R2112, R2120 and R2160 series aircraft and is freely available form the following internet address:

http://www.alphaaviation.co.nz/downloads/APEX-SB174.pdf

Consultation

This AD is being made following a review of AD/ROBIN/36. As this AD amendment is of a minor or machinery nature and does not substantially alter existing arrangements apart from reducing the applicability to Alpha Aviation HR200, R2100, R2112, R2120 and R2160 series aircraft, removing CEAPR (Robin Aviation) variants, 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 29 March 2019.

[Instrument number AD/ROBIN/36 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/ROBIN/36 Amdt 1 – Air Intake By-pass Flap

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 2001-036(A) affecting various Robin Aviation series aeroplanes in 2001. CASA subsequently issued AD/ROBIN/36 to mandate the requirements of DGAC AD 2001-036(A). As a result of a review of AD/ROBIN/36, CASA has repealed and replaced AD/ROBIN/36 to remove CEAPR (Robin Aviation) variants of the affected models, leaving Alpha Aviation variants only, as the CEAPR variants are now covered by EASA AD 2014‑0225 issued in 2014.

The primary purpose of this legislative instrument is to reduce the applicability of the 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 (CASR) were enacted to ensure the safety of civil aviation in Australia. This was achieved through the creation and enforcement of airworthiness directives (ADs), which mandate specific safety measures for aircraft and aeronautical products. Under the Civil Aviation Act 1988, the Governor-General has the authority to make regulations for implementing international civil aviation safety conventions, with CASA acting as Australia's national airworthiness authority. The AD/ROBIN/36 Amdt 1 addresses the need to refine the applicability of previous ADs for certain aircraft models, specifically the Alpha Aviation HR200, R2100, R2112, R2120, and R2160 series. This amendment was made in response to changes in the State of Design for these aircraft types and the issuance of a new AD by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) in 2014. The AD/ROBIN/36 Amdt 1 was issued by CASA following a review and is aimed at ensuring the continuing airworthiness of the specified aircraft by aligning with the latest safety directives.

Scope and Application

The Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998 Amendment (AD/ROBIN/36 Amdt 1) pertains specifically to the Alpha Aviation HR200, R2100, R2112, R2120, and R2160 series aircraft, which are subject to specific airworthiness directives. The amendment addresses safety concerns identified in previous directives issued by the French Directorate General for Civil Aviation and later by the European Aviation Safety Agency for certain aircraft variants. This amendment applies to aircraft operators within Australia, ensuring that they adhere to updated safety standards. The scope of the regulation is geographically limited to Australia, with its primary focus being the continued airworthiness of the specified aircraft types. This legislative amendment excludes aircraft variants that are now subject to different regulatory directives issued by the European Aviation Safety Agency, thereby refining the applicability of the original directive to only those aircraft for which Alpha Aviation is the State of Design. The regulation was issued by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority under the authority conferred by the Civil Aviation Act 1988 and the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998, and it commenced on 29 March 2019.

Key Provisions

The primary operative sections of the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998 (CASR) relevant to this amendment are sections 39.001 and 98, which allow the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) to issue airworthiness directives (AD) and make regulations for the purpose of carrying out and giving effect to the provisions of the Convention on International Civil Aviation relating to safety. This particular amendment, AD/ROBIN/36 Amdt 1, concerns the Alpha Aviation HR200, R2100, R2112, R2120, and R2160 series aircraft and modifies the applicability of the original AD/ROBIN/36. The amendment aims to address the differing requirements for Alpha Aviation variants and CEAPR (formerly Robin Aviation) variants of the aircraft. Under the AD/ROBIN/36 Amdt 1, the obligations and requirements imposed on the parties primarily include ensuring compliance with the specified safety regulations for the Alpha Aviation variants. Operators of these aircraft must adhere to the requirements outlined in the amended directive, which involves inspecting the air intake heat box by-pass flap as detailed in the Robin Aviation Service Bulletin No. 174 dated 29 November 2000. The directive mandates that these inspections are conducted to prevent unsafe conditions related to the by-pass flap. The amendment removes the CEAPR variants from the scope of AD/ROBIN/36, making it clear that these variants should comply with the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) AD 2014-0225 instead. The consequences for non-compliance with the provisions of AD/ROBIN/36 Amdt 1 can be significant. The ADs are considered legislative instruments under the Civil Aviation Act 1988, and failure to comply with them can result in civil or criminal penalties. Specifically, section 46 of the Act provides that a person who contravenes an airworthiness directive commits an offence. The maximum penalty for such an offence is a fine of up to 50 penalty units or imprisonment for up to six months, or both, for individuals, and a fine of up to 250 penalty units or imprisonment for up to 12 months, or both, for bodies corporate. These penalties underscore the importance of adhering to the safety directives to maintain the continuing airworthiness of the aircraft.

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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.