Compliance Regulations and Guidance Affecting your Industry

The FAA is delaying the compliance date for the final rule clarifying that contractors, including subcontractors at any tier, must be
subject to drug and alcohol testing. This action is necessary because it has cometo our attention that some original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and other entities may be confused regarding whether they are performing maintenance or preventive maintenance duties subject to drug and alcohol testing, or manufacturing duties not subject to testing. The effective date of April 10, 2006, will remain the same,but this action extends the compliance date until October 10, 2006, which gives OEMs and others sufficient time to determine what work is subject to drug and alcohol testing

Effective Date : The effective date of the final rule published at 71 FR 1666 (January 10, 2006) remains April 10, 2006

An advocacy group representing users of psychiatric service dogs has petitioned the Department to eliminate a provision of the Department of Transportation's Air Carrier Access regulation. The provision in question permits air carriers to require documentation and 48 hours' advance notice for users of psychiatric service animals. In this document, the Department is seeking comment on the group's petition and related questions. This document is not a notice of proposed rulemaking. The Department has not decided whether to grant the petition by initiating rulemaking action or to deny the petition and retain the provisions without change. The Department will publish a document in [[Page 47903]] the Federal Register regarding the determination of the petition.

DATES: Comments in response to this request must be received by December 17, 2009.

We are superseding an existing airworthiness directive (AD) for the products listed above. This AD results from mandatory continuing airworthiness information (MCAI) originated by an aviation authority of another country to identif and correct an unsafe condition on an aviation product. The MCAI describes the uns condition as

The FAA is superseding an existing airworthiness directive (AD), which applies to all Boeing Model 737– 300, –400, and –500 series airplanes. That AD currently requires repetitive inspections for discrepancies of the fuselage skin under the dorsal fin assembly, and repairing if necessary. This new AD requires an inspection for any chafing or crack in the fuselage skin and abrasion resistant coating at the dorsal fin landing, an inspection for damage to the dorsal fin seals, attach clip, and seal retainer, and other specified and corrective actions as necessary. The new requirements will end the need for the existing repetitive inspections. This AD results from a report of an 18-inch crack found in the fuselage skin area under the blade seals of the nose cap of the dorsal fin due to previous wear damage, and additional reports of fuselage skin wear. We are issuing this AD to prevent discrepancies of the fuselage skin, which could result in fatigue cracking due to cabin pressurization and consequent rapid inflight decompression of the airplane fuselage.

Effective Date:This rule is effective May 14, 2009.

We are adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain Cessna Aircraft Company (Cessna) Model 525A airplanes. This AD requires you to repetitively inspect the thrust attenuator paddle assemblies for loose and damaged fasteners and for cracks. This AD also requires you to replace loose or damaged fasteners and replace cracked thrust attenuator paddles found during any inspection. This AD results from reports of fatigue cracks found in thrust attenuator paddles. We are issuing this AD to detect and correct loose and damaged fasteners and cracks in the thrust attenuator paddles, which could result in in-flight departure of the thrust attenuator paddles. This failure could lead to rudder and elevato.

Effective Date:This rule is effective December 15, 2009.