{"id":"F2007L01765","name":"AD/EMB-120/46 - Fuel System","slug":"ad-emb-120-46-fuel-system","collection":"legislative_instrument","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":66510,"registerId":"commonwealth-F2007L01765-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-02","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"Embraer EMB-120 (Brasilia) Series Aeropl","sectionType":"division","heading":"Embraer EMB-120 (Brasilia) Series Aeroplanes","content":"### Embraer EMB-120 (Brasilia) Series Aeroplanes\n\n| AD/EMB-120/46 | Fuel System | 8/2007 DM |\n| ------------- | ----------- | --------- |\n\n| Applicability: | All EMB-120( ) Brasilia aeroplanes.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        |\n| -------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |\n| Requirement:   | 1. Revise the operator’s approved system of maintenance to include the tasks 15 to 18 of Section 6 - “Part E: Fuel System Limitations”, as shown in the Temporary Revision 22-1 of the Maintenance Review Board Report (MRBR) for the Embraer EMB-120( ) aircraft, dated 18 November 2005 or later revision approved by the Brazilian Agência Nacional de Avição Civil (ANAC), with the intervals stated in that document. |\n|                | 2. Carry out the functional checks (FNC) and detailed visual inspections (DET) required by tasks 15 to 18 of Section 6 - “Part E: Fuel System Limitations”, as shown in the Temporary Revision 22-1 of the MRBR for the EmbraerEMB-120( ) aircraft, or later revision approved by the ANAC.                                                                                                                                |\n|                | 3. Revise the operator’s approved system of maintenance to include the items 1) and 2) of Section 6 - “Part D: Critical Design Configuration Control Limitations”, as shown in Revision 22 of the MRBR for the Embraer EMB-120( ) aircraft, dated 22 March 2005, or later revision approved by the ANAC, with the restrictions imposed by that document.                                                                   |\n|                | Note 1: The revision or variation of an operator’s system of maintenance must be approved by the CASA under Civil Aviation Regulation 42R.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 |\n|                | Note 2: ANAC AD 2007-05-02 Amdt 39-1183 refers.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            |\n| Compliance:    | For Requirement 1 - Within the next 30 calendar days after the effective date of this Directive.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           |\n|                | For Requirement 2 - Within the next 4000 hours time in service or 48 calendar months after the effective date of this Directive, whichever occurs first and thereafter repeat these tasks at the intervals stated in the MRBR.                                                                                                                                                                                             |\n|                | For Requirement 3 - Within the next 30 calendar days after the effective date of this Directive.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           |\n|                | This Airworthiness Directive becomes effective on 29 June 2007.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            |\n\n| Background: | The ANAC has advised that it has been found that former revisions of theEMB-120( ) MRBR do not fully comply with some Critical Design Configuration Control Limitations (CDCCL) and Fuel System Limitations (FSL). These limitations are necessary to preclude ignition sources in the fuel system, as required by Regulamento Brazileiro de Homologação Aeronáutica (RBHA) E88/United States Special Federal Aviation Regulation (SFAR) 88.Since this condition affects flight safety and corrective action is required, this Directive requires the revision of operator’s approved system of maintenance and the completion of certain inspections and/or functional checks. |\n| ----------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |\n\n![](image.001.png)  \nDavid Punshon  \nDelegate of the Civil Aviation Safety Authority\n\n14 June 2007","sortOrder":0},{"sectionNumber":"AD/EMB-120/46","sectionType":"part","heading":"AD/EMB-120/46","content":"## AD/EMB-120/46","sortOrder":1},{"sectionNumber":"Fuel System","sectionType":"part","heading":"Fuel System","content":"## Fuel System","sortOrder":2},{"sectionNumber":"8/2007 DM","sectionType":"part","heading":"8/2007 DM","content":"## 8/2007 DM","sortOrder":3}],"analysis":{"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This directive stays within the original, stated scope: it requires operator maintenance-program revisions and inspections to bring MRBR-derived fuel-system and configuration-control limitations into effect. It does not broaden the regulatory subject beyond fuel-system ignition-source prevention and associated maintenance controls; rather, it enforces conformity with MRBR items and RBHA E88/SFAR 88 requirements already identified by ANAC (Background; Requirements)."},"complexity_factors":["Short directive with three substantive requirements (Requirements 1–3).","Cross-references to two specific MRBR documents: Temporary Revision 22-1 (Part E tasks 15–18) and Revision 22 (Part D items 1–2).","Dependence on later revisions subject to approval by a foreign regulator (ANAC) — introduces versioning complexity.","CASA approval requirement under Civil Aviation Regulation 42R for maintenance-system changes (Note 1).","Multiple compliance timeframes: 30 calendar days for program changes; 4,000 hours TIS or 48 months for inspections; then repeat per MRBR intervals (Compliance).","Reference to external regulatory standards (RBHA E88 / SFAR 88) in the Background.","Procedural elements (FNC and DET inspections) that require interpretation of MRBR task descriptions rather than fully specified inspection steps within the directive itself."],"plain_english_summary":"**What this directive does (mechanically):**\n\n- Applies to: all Embraer EMB-120 (Brasilia) aeroplanes (\"Applicability\").\n- Requires operators to revise their approved maintenance program to incorporate specific fuel-system and configuration-control limitations published in Embraer maintenance documents (the MRBR revisions specified). Specifically:\n  - Add tasks 15–18 in Section 6, Part E — Fuel System Limitations — from Temporary Revision 22-1 of the MRBR (or a later ANAC-approved revision) (Requirement 1).\n  - Perform the functional checks (FNC) and detailed visual inspections (DET) required by those tasks (Requirement 2).\n  - Add items 1) and 2) in Section 6, Part D — Critical Design Configuration Control Limitations (CDCCL) — from Revision 22 of the MRBR (or a later ANAC-approved revision) (Requirement 3).\n- Deadlines and repetition:\n  - Requirements 1 and 3: incorporate the MRBR items into the maintenance system within 30 calendar days of the directive becoming effective (Compliance).\n  - Requirement 2: carry out the specified checks/inspections within 4,000 hours time-in-service or 48 calendar months after the effective date (whichever is sooner), and then repeat those tasks at the intervals in the MRBR (Compliance).\n- Approvals and references:\n  - Any revision of an operator's approved maintenance system must be approved by CASA under Civil Aviation Regulation 42R (Note 1).\n  - The MRBR revisions must be those approved by the Brazilian regulator ANAC (the directive references ANAC AD 2007-05-02) (Note 2 and Requirements).\n- Stated reason: ANAC identified that earlier MRBR revisions did not fully meet Critical Design Configuration Control Limitations and Fuel System Limitations intended to prevent ignition sources in the fuel system, as required by RBHA E88 / SFAR 88. The directive implements corrections by requiring maintenance-program changes and inspections (Background).\n\n**Who this affects and who pays:**\n\n- Primary affected parties: aircraft operators and their maintenance organisations for all EMB-120 aircraft. Operators are required to amend their approved maintenance system and to perform additional checks and inspections (Requirements 1–3).\n- Who pays: the costs of revising maintenance documentation, obtaining CASA approval, performing functional checks and detailed inspections, and any associated downtime or remedial work are borne by the operators (Requirements and Compliance).\n- Who decides: operators must propose the maintenance-program revisions; CASA must approve those revisions under CAR 42R; the MRBR content to be incorporated is the version approved by ANAC (Requirements, Note 1).\n\n**Why it matters (claimed purpose and practical effects):**\n\n- The directive is presented as a safety corrective measure to reduce the risk of fuel-system ignition sources by ensuring operator maintenance programs and inspection tasks align with Embraer MRBR limitations and with RBHA E88 / SFAR 88 requirements (Background).\n\n**Testing the purpose-claim against practical considerations:**\n\n- Costs and compliance burden: operators face short deadlines (30 days for program changes) and must schedule inspections within 4,000 hours or 48 months; these create administrative work, possible training needs, inspection labour, parts or corrective action costs, and potential aircraft downtime (Requirements; Compliance).\n- Incentives and behaviour change: to remain airworthy and avoid regulatory action, operators will update their maintenance program and perform the specified inspections. This centralises the MRBR tasks into each operator's approved system and enforces repeated checks at MRBR intervals (Requirements 1–2; Compliance).\n- Bureaucratic discretion and approval path: CASA must approve the maintenance-system revisions (Note 1). The directive depends on Embraer MRBR revisions that must be approved by ANAC — this creates a three‑party linkage (operator, CASA, ANAC) in deciding the exact tasks to be carried out (Requirements; Notes).\n- Implementation risk and timing: short approval windows (30 days) and reliance on ANAC‑approved MRBR revisions may create scheduling pressure, especially where local maintenance organisations must adapt procedures or training. Delays in CASA approvals or variations in MRBR revisions could complicate timely compliance (Compliance; Requirements; Note 1).\n- Opportunity costs and trade-offs: resources (maintenance labour, hangar time, administrative time) must be allocated to implement and repeat these inspections, which may displace other maintenance priorities or increase operating costs. The directive shifts those costs to operators while aiming to reduce the probability of fuel-system ignition (Requirements; Background).\n- Effects on private choice and market behaviour: operators retain the choice of maintenance providers and how to organise compliance, subject to CASA approval and MRBR-prescribed limits. Some operators may change maintenance suppliers or reallocate in-house capability to meet the new tasks (Requirements; Note 1).\n- Concentrated benefits and diffuse costs: benefits (reduced ignition risk) are spread across aircraft, passengers and operators generally; the direct costs fall on individual operators who must implement the changes and carry out inspections (Requirements; Background).\n\n**Where to look in the directive for details:**\n- The exact tasks, inspection methods, and repeat intervals are in the specified MRBR revisions (Temporary Revision 22-1 for Part E tasks 15–18; Revision 22 for Part D items 1–2). The directive requires adopting those MRBR provisions as part of each operator's approved maintenance system (Requirements 1–3; Compliance; Notes)."},"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 is a standard Airworthiness Directive with a focused, narrow scope. It addresses a specific safety issue (fuel system ignition prevention) for a single aircraft type. There is no indication of scope creep; the document remains tightly focused on its original safety purpose."},"complexity_factors":["Single specific aircraft type (Embraer EMB-120) with narrow applicability","Only 3 substantive requirements, though they reference external technical documents (MRBR Temporary Revision 22-1, Revision 22)","Simple conditional logic: two different compliance deadlines (30 days vs 4,000 hours/48 months)","Cross-reference to Brazilian aviation regulations (ANAC, RBHA) and US SFAR 88, but these are explanatory rather than operative","No defined terms section — relies on standard aviation terminology","Straightforward structure: Applicability → Requirements → Compliance → Background"],"plain_english_summary":"CASA requires operators of Embraer EMB‑120 Brasilia in Australia to update maintenance manuals and carry out mandatory fuel‑system inspections and functional checks to eliminate potential ignition sources. Updates must be done within 30 days; inspections within 4,000 flight hours or 48 months and then at specified intervals.\n\nThis order addresses fuel‑system spark/overheat risks that could lead to in‑flight fires or explosions."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/ad-emb-120-46-fuel-system","history":"/api/acts/ad-emb-120-46-fuel-system/history","analysis":"/api/acts/ad-emb-120-46-fuel-system/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/ad-emb-120-46-fuel-system/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/ad-emb-120-46-fuel-system/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/ad-emb-120-46-fuel-system/documents"}}