Official US Government Icon

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure Site Icon

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).

We propose to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) for various restricted category helicopters. This proposed AD would require cleaning and visually inspecting certain main rotor (M/R) blades and, depending on the outcome of the inspections, repairing or replacing the M/R blades. This proposed AD is prompted by a report of an M/R blade with multiple fatigue cracks around the blade retention bolt hole. The proposed actions are intended to detect a crack in the M/R blade, and prevent failure of the M/R blade and subsequent loss of helicopter control.

View PDF