The Federal Aviation Agency (FAA) has finalized a new rule designed to reduce the risk for wire failures, smoke, and fire on commercial airliners. In its November decision, the FAA determined manufacturers of planes currently in service must complete FAA-approved instructions for new wiring-related maintenance and inspection within 24 months of the effective date. U.S.-scheduled air carriers and foreign airlines operating U.S.-registered aircraft must develop maintenance and inspection programs for wiring based on the manufacturers’ instructions within 39 months of the effective date, and update those programs as needed for subsequent aircraft modifications.
The rule is part of a broader FAA effort to improve the safety of a variety of aircraft systems, including how connectors, wiring harnesses, and cables were installed, and how they degraded during an aircraft’s service. The FAA says the new rule “greatly enhances the safety requirements for design, installation, and maintenance of electrical wiring in new and existing airplane designs.” It moves existing rules on wiring into a single section and adds new certification standards to address wire degradation and inadequate design or maintenance.
The full ruling can be viewed at: www.faa.gov/regulations_policies/rulemaking/recently_published/
