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SCHEDULE OF AIRWORTHINESS DIRECTIVES

Piper PA-30 Twin Comanche · Airworthiness Directives

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Overview

This document is an Airworthiness Directive (AD) issued by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority of Australia concerning the Piper PA-30 and PA-39 Twin Comanche series aeroplanes. It specifically addresses the inspection and maintenance of stabilator attachment bolts to ensure safety and compliance with aviation regulations. The directive outlines the requirements for inspecting these bolts for corrosion, the applicable serial numbers for affected aircraft, and the necessary actions to take if corrosion is found. This AD is crucial for maintaining the airworthiness of the aircraft and ensuring the safety of flight operations.

  • Applicable to Piper PA-30 (30-1 to 30-2000) and PA-39 (39-1 to 39-155) aircraft.
  • Inspect stabilator attachment bolts for corrosion every three years or 500 hours, whichever comes first.
  • If corrosion is found, replace bolts, nuts, and washers with new or equivalent corrosion-resistant parts.
  • Compliance with this AD is mandatory to ensure aircraft safety and airworthiness.
  • The directive was amended to align with FAA regulations and address safety concerns.

Document

Source

Originally published by services.casa.gov.au. Sprinkle hosts a reference copy with an added summary, specifications and searchable full text.

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Document details

Type
Airworthiness Directives
Year
2009
Pages
2
File size
22 KB
Publisher
services.casa.gov.au
How rare is it?
15Piper PA-30 Twin Comanche registered worldwide · 0 active

Common. Rarer than 5% of the aircraft models we track.

Documentation completeness
5/7

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In this document

Applicability

The AD applies to all Piper PA-30 aircraft with serial numbers from 30-1 to 30-2000 and all Piper PA-39 aircraft with serial numbers from 39-1 to 39-155, specifically if the stabilator attachment bolts are not made of corrosion-resistant steel.

Requirement

Operators must remove the four stabilator attachment bolts and inspect them for corrosion. The inspection must follow Piper Service Letters No. 667A for PA-30 and No. 772 for PA-39. If corrosion is detected, the bolts, nuts, and washers must be replaced with new parts or equivalent corrosion-resistant AN bolts.

Compliance

The compliance interval for this AD is set at not exceeding three years or 500 hours of time in service, whichever comes first. Alternatively, operators may replace the bolts with equivalent corrosion-resistant AN bolts.

Background

The original AD was issued in January 1974 for the Piper PA-30, requiring bolt replacement within 100 hours. Subsequent amendments have modified the inspection intervals and expanded the applicability to include the Piper PA-39, reflecting ongoing safety concerns and supply issues with corrosion-resistant bolts.

Safety notes

  • Corrosion in stabilator attachment bolts can lead to unsafe flight conditions.
  • Immediate action is required if corrosion is detected during inspections.

Full document text

COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA (Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998), PART 39 - 105 CIVIL AVIATION SAFETY AUTHORITY SCHEDULE OF AIRWORTHINESS DIRECTIVES Page 1 of 2 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) AD/PA-30/23 Amdt 2 and issues the following AD under subregulation 39.001(1) of CASR 1998. The AD requires that the action set out in the requirement section (being action that the delegate considers necessary to correct the unsafe condition) be taken in relation to the aircraft or aeronautical product mentioned in the applicability section: (a) in the circumstances mentioned in the requirement section; and (b) in accordance with the instructions set out in the requirement section; and (c) at the time mentioned in the compliance section. Piper PA-30 & 39 (Twin Comanche) Series Aeroplanes AD/PA-30/23 Amdt 3 Stabilator Attachment Bolts - Inspection 2/2009 Applicability: All model Piper PA-30 with serial numbers from 30-1 to 30-2000, and all model Piper PA-39 with serial numbers from 39-1 to 39-155, if the four stabilator attachment bolts are not made of corrosion-resistant steel. Requirement: Remove the four stabilator attachment bolts and inspect for corrosion in accordance with: (a) Piper PA-30 aircraft - Piper SL No. 667A. (b) Piper PA-39 aircraft - Piper SL No. 772. If corrosion is found, before further flight replace the bolt, nut and washer with unused parts of the same part numbers or equivalent. Alternatively, the bolts can be replaced by equivalent corrosion-resistant AN bolts. Note 1: Parts numbered 502329 and 502342 are corrosion-resistant bolts. Note 2: FAA AD 74-13-03 (amdt 39-2588) refers. Compliance: At intervals not exceeding three years or five hundred hours time in service, whichever occurs first. Alternatively, the bolts can be replaced by equivalent corrosion-resistant AN bolts. Note 3: Compliance with this AD at amendment 2 constitutes compliance with this amendment. This Amendment becomes effective on 12 February 2009. Background: The original issue of this AD in January 1974 applied to Piper PA-30 only, and specified replacement of stabilator attachment bolts within 100 hours after 31 January 1974, based on Piper SL No. 667. Amendment 1 in March 1974 specified inspection at 3 monthly intervals as an alternative to replacement, due to difficulties with supply of suitable corrosion- resistant bolts. In March 1974 Piper issued SL No. 667A to authorise, as an alternative to corrosion-resistant bolts, new steel alloy bolts with repetitive inspections at intervals not to exceed 500 hours in service. COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA (Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998), PART 39 - 105 CIVIL AVIATION SAFETY AUTHORITY SCHEDULE OF AIRWORTHINESS DIRECTIVES Piper PA-30 & 39 (Twin Comanche) Series Aeroplanes AD/PA-30/23 Amdt 3 (continued) Page 2 of 2 In June 1974 the FAA issued AD 74-13-03 (amdt 39-1872) specifying inspection at intervals not to exceed 3 years or 500 hours, whichever occurred first, as an alternative to replacement. Amdt 39-1872 nominated Piper SL No. 667A. Amendment 2 in January 1975 extended applicability to include Piper PA-39, based on defects reported in Australia. In February 1976 Piper issued SL No. 772 applicable to Piper PA-39. In April 1976 the FAA re-issued AD 74-13-03 at amdt 39-2588 to extend applicability to include Piper PA-39. Amendment 3 is raised to align the inspection interval with FAA AD 74-13-03; to define serial number applicability; to identify the FAA AD on which AD/PA-30/23 is now based; and to add Piper SL No. 667A and SL No. 772 as the instructions for inspecting steel alloy bolts. David Punshon Delegate of the Civil Aviation Safety Authority 12 December 2008