E7-22630. Airworthiness Directives; Saab Model SAAB-Fairchild SF340A (SAAB/SF340A) and SAAB 340B Airplanes

AGENCY:

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Department of Transportation (DOT).

ACTION:

Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM); reopening of comment period.

SUMMARY:

This document announces a reopening of the comment period for the above-referenced NPRM. The NPRM proposed the adoption of a new airworthiness directive for certain Saab Model SAAB-Fairchild SF340A (SAAB/SF340A) and SAAB 340B airplanes. That NPRM invited comments concerning the proposed requirements for doing repetitive ultrasonic inspections to detect cracking in the axle adaptor, replacing the axle adaptor if necessary, and ultimately doing the terminating action of inspecting and modifying the main landing gear shock strut and axle adaptors. This reopening of the comment period is necessary to provide additional opportunity for public comment on the proposed requirements of that NPRM.

DATES:

We must receive comments on this proposed AD by December 20, 2007.

ADDRESSES:

You may send comments by any of the following methods:

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
• Fax: [phone].
• Mail: U.S. Department of Transportation, Docket Operations, M-30, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 20590.
• Hand Delivery: U.S. Department of Transportation, Docket Operations, M-30, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.

For service information identified in this AD, contact Saab Aircraft AB, SAAB Aircraft Product Support, S-581.88, Linköping, Sweden.

Examining the AD Docket

You may examine the AD docket on the Internet at http://www.regulations.gov; or in person at the Docket Management Facility between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. The AD docket contains this proposed AD, the regulatory evaluation, any comments received, and other information. The street address for the Docket Office (telephone [phone]) is in the ADDRESSES section. Comments will be available in the AD docket shortly after receipt.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Mike Borfitz, Aerospace Engineer, International Branch, ANM-116, FAA, Transport Airplane Directorate, 1601 Lind Avenue, SW., Renton, Washington 98057-3356; telephone [phone]; fax [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

We proposed to amend 14 CFR part 39 with a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) for an AD for certain Saab Model SAAB-Fairchild SF340A (SAAB/SF340A) and SAAB 340B airplanes. The NPRM was published in the Federal Register on September 28, 2007 (72 FR 55116). The NPRM proposed to require doing repetitive ultrasonic inspections to detect cracking in the axle adaptor, replacing the axle adaptor if necessary, and ultimately doing the terminating action of inspecting and modifying the main landing gear shock strut and axle adaptors. The NPRM action invites comments on the overall regulatory, economic, environmental, and energy aspects of the proposed AD.

Actions Since NPRM Was Issued

Since we issued the NPRM, the DOT's Docket Management System (DMS) was replaced by the Federal Docket Management System (FDMS). FDMS is a government-wide, electronic docket management system, which contains the public dockets and is the method used for submitting comments on the overall regulatory, economic, environmental, and energy aspects of proposed rulemaking actions. However, due to the service disruption caused by the transition from DOT's DMS to the FDMS, the docket material was not posted on the FDMS until November 1, 2007. Therefore, we have determined that the public was not provided adequate opportunity to submit comments on the NPRM. As a result, we have decided to reopen the comment period for 30 days to receive additional comments.

No part of the regulatory information has been changed; therefore, the NPRM is not republished in the Federal Register.

Comments Due Date

We must receive comments on this AD action by December 20, 2007.

Issued in Renton, Washington, on November 8, 2007.

Ali Bahrami,

Manager, Transport Airplane Directorate, Aircraft Certification Service.