AD NUMBER: 2019-17-03

PRODUCT: Certain Airbus SAS Model A320-214 and -271N airplanes and Model A321-211 and -231 airplanes.

ACTION: Final Rule.

SUMMARY: This AD was prompted by a test of a new wall partition for a certain cabin attendant seat model that revealed the backrest was permanently deformed and did not allow the seat pan to return to a full-up position; investigation results identified that a heat treatment had not been applied on certain backframes.

This AD requires modifying the affected cabin attendant seats, as specified in a European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) AD, which is incorporated by reference.

DATES: This AD is effective October 11, 2019.

COST: The FAA estimates that this AD affects 19 airplanes of U.S. registry. Operators may incur the following costs in order to comply with this AD:

• Up to 462 work-hours × $85 per hour = $39,270 per aircraft.

The FAA estimates that it would take about 1 work-hour per product to comply with the reporting requirement in this AD. The average labor rate is $85 per hour.

Based on these figures, the FAA estimates the cost of reporting the modification results on U.S. operators to be $85 per product. The FAA has received no definitive data that would enable the agency to provide cost estimates for the additional actions specified in this AD.

According to the manufacturer, some or all of the costs of this AD may be covered under warranty, thereby reducing the cost impact on affected individuals. The FAA does not control warranty coverage for affected individuals. As a result, the FAA has included all known costs in its cost estimate.

FMI: AD