{"id":"F2005L00840","name":"AD/A330/50 - CFRP Rudder","slug":"ad-a330-50-cfrp-rudder","collection":"legislative_instrument","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":113175,"registerId":"commonwealth-F2005L00840-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-03","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"Airbus Industrie A330 Series Aeroplanes","sectionType":"division","heading":"Airbus Industrie A330 Series Aeroplanes","content":"### Airbus Industrie A330 Series Aeroplanes\n\n| AD/A330/50 | CFRP Rudder | 5/2005 |\n| ---------- | ----------- | ------ |\n\n| Applicability: | All Airbus A330-300 aircraft fitted with CFRP rudder P/N A55471500, and any CFRP rudder P/N A55471500 held as a spare.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         |\n| -------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |\n| Requirement:   | Perform inspection, and apply corrective measures if necessary, in accordance with the instructions specified in paragraphs 4.2.1 through 4.2.3 of Airbus All Operator Telex (AOT) A330-55A3035.Any of the inspections required in section 4.2.2 of the AOT which have been performed in the last 18 months prior to the effective date of this AD, is an acceptable means of compliance to the corresponding inspection of section 4.2.2 of the AOT’s provided that the inspection results are reported to Airbus.In case of findings in the rudder side panels, refer to Airbus Structure Engineering Customer Support for an approved repair solution before further flight.If damage to the rudder attachment exceeds the Structure Repair Manual (SRM) limits, refer to Airbus Structure Engineering Customer Support for an approved repair solution before further flight.The inspection results, whatever they are, must be reported to Airbus within 10 days of completion of all inspections defined in section 4.2.1 through 4.2.3 of the AOT using Reporting Sheet TD 943.0273/05 Issue A, dated March 16, 2005.Note: DGAC EAD UF-2005-053 refers. |\n| Compliance:    | Within 850 flight hours or three (3) months (whichever occurs first) from the effective date of this AD.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       |\n|                | This Airworthiness Directive becomes effective on 12 May 2005.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 |\n| Background:    | An A310 in flight from Varadero, Cuba to Quebec, Canada experienced the physical loss of the majority of the rudder structure at cruise altitude. The reason and sequence that may have led to this rupture are still under investigation at the present time. The loss of rudder leads to degradation of the handling qualities and reduced controllability of the aircraft under certain conditions such as crosswind landings and engine out operations.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    |\n\n|     | The CFRP rudder P/N fitted on the A310 aircraft involved is also installed on certain A330 aircraft. CFRP rudder P/N A55471500 has been fitted on A330-300 production aircraft MSN 0012, 0017, 0030, 0037, 0045, and 0050. |\n| --- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |\n\n![](image.001.png)  \nDavid Villiers  \nDelegate of the Civil Aviation Safety Authority\n\n31 March 2005","sortOrder":0},{"sectionNumber":"AD/A330/50","sectionType":"part","heading":"AD/A330/50","content":"## AD/A330/50","sortOrder":1},{"sectionNumber":"CFRP Rudder","sectionType":"part","heading":"CFRP Rudder","content":"## CFRP Rudder","sortOrder":2},{"sectionNumber":"5/2005","sectionType":"part","heading":"5/2005","content":"## 5/2005","sortOrder":3}],"analysis":{"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"A positive credit balance is required for all requests, including BYOK, so fallback providers remain available. Add credits at https://vercel.com/d?to=%2F%5Bteam%5D%2F%7E%2Fai%3Fmodal%3Dtop-up to continue.","source":"analysis-cron"},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This AD maintains its original narrow scope — addressing a specific safety defect in a specific rudder part on specific aircraft. It has not expanded beyond its original purpose of preventing rudder failure following the A310 incident."},"complexity_factors":["Single, specific technical requirement (inspect per Airbus instructions)","Limited applicability (only 6 specific aircraft serial numbers plus spares)","Clear compliance deadline (850 flight hours or 3 months)","Simple conditional logic (if damage found → contact Airbus for repair)","Cross-reference to external technical document (Airbus AOT A330-55A3035) rather than reproducing full instructions in the AD itself","No nested exceptions or complex defined terms section","Short document (approximately 300 words of substantive content)"],"plain_english_summary":"This AD requires operators of Airbus A330-300 aeroplanes fitted with the CFRP rudder (P/N A55471500) — and anyone holding spares of that part — to inspect the rudder promptly and obtain approved repairs if damage is found, and to report results to Airbus. It follows a mid‑flight rudder loss on a related A310 and aims to prevent loss of control risks (especially during crosswinds or engine‑out conditions) by catching defects before they cause an accident."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The AD extends action prompted by an A310 rudder loss (Background) to Airbus A330-300 aircraft that use the same CFRP rudder P/N A55471500. In other words, the scope moved from the incident type (A310) to include A330-300 airframes and spares fitted with that part number (Background; Applicability)."},"complexity_factors":["Dependence on an external service document (Airbus AOT A330-55A3035 paras 4.2.1–4.2.3) to define inspection and corrective action details (Requirement).","Mandatory reporting of inspection results to Airbus within 10 days, creating administrative burden and a data-submission requirement (Requirement).","Time-limited compliance window of 850 flight hours or three months from the effective date, which may compress operator maintenance schedules (Compliance).","Referral to Airbus Structure Engineering Customer Support for approved repair solutions when findings exceed SRM limits — introduces engineering approval discretion and potential delays (Requirement).","Applicability limited to aircraft and spares fitted with a specific part number (P/N A55471500) and identified MSNs, requiring operators to identify affected assets precisely (Applicability).","Provision allowing prior inspections (performed within 18 months) to satisfy the AD if reported to Airbus adds record-keeping and judgement about equivalence (Requirement)."],"plain_english_summary":"This Airworthiness Directive requires operators of Airbus A330-300 aircraft fitted with CFRP rudder P/N A55471500 (including spares) to inspect and, if necessary, repair the rudder following Airbus AOT A330-55A3035 (paras 4.2.1–4.2.3). Inspection results must be reported to Airbus within 10 days (Requirement).\n\nCompliance must occur within 850 flight hours or three months of the effective date; operators pay for inspections/repairs and must obtain Airbus Structure Engineering approval for repairs beyond SRM limits (Compliance; Requirement)."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/ad-a330-50-cfrp-rudder","history":"/api/acts/ad-a330-50-cfrp-rudder/history","analysis":"/api/acts/ad-a330-50-cfrp-rudder/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/ad-a330-50-cfrp-rudder/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/ad-a330-50-cfrp-rudder/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/ad-a330-50-cfrp-rudder/documents"}}