Robert Fisher

We currently operate eleven Bell Helicopters with the 212-010-750- tail rotor blade. We have in excess of 45,000 flight hours with these blades with no maintenance problems or non repairable defects. Minor repairable defects have occured. Our helicopters primarily respond to fire emergencies where lives and property are threatened. We also are available for rescue missions along with earthquake and flood disasters. This Airworthiness Directive has created severe operational handicaps for our response to emergencies. An Alternate Method of Compliance ( AMOC ) would help. To have the pilot perform a visual inspection of the blades prior to every engine start causes delays in responding to such disasters. To ground the helicopter for the 25 hour inspection would create even more delays. The helicopter would be out of service and unable to protect life and property for serveral hours waiting for a technician. A licensed mechanic must perform this inspection. We do not have technicians with the helicopter. They operate out of remote sites during these emergencies. Eleven helicopters operating throughout the State of California , flying up to 14 hours a day per helicopter ( worst case scenereo ) is a logistic nightmare. All maintenance is directed out of a central California facility. A normal inspection interval on our helicopter, performed by a licensed technician, is every 50 flight hours. We would like to have the pilots perform the visual inspection IAW para ( a) every preflight and post flight instead of prior to every engine start. We would also like to train our pilots to perform the 25 hour inspection using the magnifying glass. We would then have a licensed technician perform the detailed inspection at the 50 hour interval. Something needs to be done with this Airworthiness Directive in changing the inspection interval to more fit our mission of protecting lives and property.