Airworthiness Directives 2004 - Revocation and Remaking - Fairchild (Swearingen) SA226 and SA227 Series Aeroplanes

The document rests on a small number of legal and administrative concepts that dictate what the instrument does and how it should be read.

Authority and delegation. The instrument is made by a delegate of the Civil Aviation Safety Authority under a named provision, subregulation 39.001(1) of the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998. That is the statutory locus of power invoked by the text to revoke and remake Airworthiness Directives. The instrument therefore exemplifies the exercise of delegated administrative power in the civil aviation regulatory regime.

Revocation and remaking as separate instruments. The instrument accomplishes two distinct legal acts, stated in separate limbs: revocation of the ADs listed in Schedule 1, and remaking of the ADs listed in Schedule 1 as separate instruments that are attached. The use of the phrase “make, as separate instruments” indicates that each remade AD is intended to exist on its own, rather than merely to survive as part of the revocation instrument.

Continuity through identical remaking. The Note attached to the instrument states expressly that each attached AD is being remade “in exactly the same form as appears in the latest published edition of the Directive”. That establishes the intended continuity of regulatory content. The instrument does not itself reproduce the operative requirements of each AD in the body of this revocation/remaking instrument; instead it relies on attachment of the separately made instruments, which are to be identical to the latest published ADs.

Catalogue of subject-matter. Schedule 1 itself is a compact catalogue of subject matters, showing the scope of the ADs being processed. The listed AD titles identify a wide set of airworthiness topics, including frame splices, stabiliser and rudder components, fuel lines and wiring, landing gear items, placards and operational prohibitions, inspection regimes, life-limited items, and various modifications and reworks. The presence of amendment identifiers and cancellation notations in the Schedule provides a snapshot of the administrative history of those ADs as of the date of this instrument.

Status signals within the Schedule. Several entries are annotated “CANCELLED” or “Superseded by …”, and many carry amendment suffixes (for example “Amdt 1”, “Amdt 3”, “Amdt 6”). Those annotations are part of the Schedule and therefore part of the instrument’s record. The combination of revocation and remaking together with these annotations creates a legal and administrative relationship between the instrument, the attached ADs, and the earlier published editions.

Limited textual change. The instrument does not purport to amend the substantive content of any AD. The Note requires that the remade ADs be identical to the latest published edition. Therefore, the primary conceptual purpose of the instrument is administrative housekeeping: it alters the legal form and possibly the instrument identifier of a set of ADs while preserving their operative content.

The instrument identifies, by subject heading and explicit Schedule heading, that it applies to Fairchild (Swearingen) SA226 and SA227 series aeroplanes (see Schedule 1 heading). The immediate practical effect is to change the instrument status of the listed Airworthiness Directives that relate to these types of aircraft. From that starting point, the natural classes of actors affected by the instrument, as inferred from the Schedule’s content, are the following.

Owners and operators of Fairchild (Swearingen) SA226 and SA227 series aeroplanes. Because the ADs listed concern mandatory inspections, modifications, placards and life limitations, the day-to-day legal obligations created by those ADs fall on persons and organisations responsible for maintaining the continuing airworthiness and operational compliance of those aeroplanes. The instrument’s remaking of those ADs as separate instruments preserves the operative requirements that those owners and operators must follow.

Maintenance organisations and certifying staff. ADs frequently specify inspection intervals, modification procedures, placard installations, life limits and corrective actions. The Schedule lists items such as “Frame Splices - Inspection”, “Fuel Line and Heat Shroud - Inspection”, “Main Landing Gear Uplock Roller - Inspection and Modification” and “Supplemental Inspection Program and Life Limited Items” (for example AD/SWSA226/1, AD/SWSA226/7, AD/SWSA226/9, AD/SWSA226/43 Amdt 6). The practical effect is that maintenance organisations, certifying mechanics and engineers who perform, certify or record compliance with AD requirements are the operational agents who must implement the remade ADs.

Continuing airworthiness management entities. Entities responsible for continued airworthiness, including those holding manuals, maintenance control documents or continuing airworthiness management approvals, will need to treat these remade ADs as instruments to be tracked and complied with. The Schedule’s breadth suggests a combination of structural, systems and operational ADs, so continuing airworthiness oversight will need to incorporate the remade ADs into maintenance and airworthiness planning.

Civil Aviation Safety Authority and its delegates. The instrument itself is made by a CASA delegate and thereby affects the regulatory register of ADs held and enforced by CASA. CASA’s compliance, surveillance and record-keeping functions are affected by the administrative revocation and remaking exercise because register entries, databases and published lists will need to reflect the new instrument forms.

Third parties with contractual ties to affected aircraft. Less directly, lessees, insurers, lessors, financiers and purchasers of SA226/227 airframes will be affected to the extent that the ADs impose modifications, inspections or life limits that alter residual values, airworthiness status or allowable operations. The Schedule lists items that can bear on aircraft availability and maintenance expense, and the remade ADs preserve the latest published requirements that those third parties will need to consider.

The instrument does not in its text identify any exemptions, transitional arrangements, or parties specifically relieved from the requirements of the remade ADs. It does, however, include entries in the Schedule marked “CANCELLED” or “Superseded by …”, which signal that certain previously listed ADs are historically obsolete or have been replaced. Those annotations affect which operators must focus on which current documents, and therefore create a necessity for affected parties to consult the attached remade ADs and the Schedule to determine current obligations.

The instrument itself is an administrative device that changes the legal form of existing Airworthiness Directives rather than imposing new substantive requirements within its text. Nonetheless, it creates a small set of key duties and legal positions that follow from the revocation and remaking.

Delegate duty to revoke and remake. The delegate, David Alan Villiers, exercises the function of revoking the listed ADs and remaking them as separate instruments, as authorised by subregulation 39.001(1) of the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998. That is an express duty performed by the delegate in this instrument.

Preservation of AD content as separate instruments. The Note states that each attached AD is being remade “in exactly the same form as appears in the latest published edition of the Directive”. The mechanical duty on the instrument-maker is to ensure that the separately made instruments attached to this instrument reproduce the latest published content. For readers, the practical duty that follows is that compliance obligations now exist through those separately made instruments, not through the ADs in their previously published form.

Operator and maintainer duty to comply with remade ADs. Although this instrument does not set out the substantive requirements of each AD in its body, the remade ADs (being separate instruments and identical to the latest published edition) will set out express actions and compliance timelines. Therefore operators, maintainers and certifying staff have a continuing duty to comply with the requirements specified in each remade AD. The Schedule contains titles that point to the kinds of duties likely contained in those ADs, for example inspections, replacements, modifications, placard installations and limitations.

Duty to consult attachments and the latest published edition. Given that the instrument both revokes and remakes the ADs and that the Note emphasises identity with the latest published edition, affected parties have a duty, for purposes of legal certainty, to consult the attached remade ADs and to treat them as the operative instruments. The instrument’s structure creates legal reliance on the separately attached ADs.

No new rights or appeal mechanisms stated. The instrument does not articulate any new rights, exemptions, or appeal procedures for persons affected by the remade ADs. It is silent on matters such as transitional relief, deferral rights, or dispute resolution. Any rights that flow from administrative law or the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998 are not restated in this instrument, and so parties must rely on the broader statutory framework for rights of review or challenge.

Record-keeping duty implied by AD content. Many ADs impose requirements that create record-keeping obligations, for example to log inspections, replacements and modification compliance. The instrument’s remaking of ADs into separate instruments implies that the operational parties who must follow the ADs will continue to have whatever record-keeping and certification duties are specified in each AD, but the instrument itself does not enumerate them.

No penalties or enforcement rules in the instrument itself. The instrument does not specify enforcement mechanisms or penalties in its text; those will be governed by the relevant statutory and regulatory framework under which CASA operates. The practical effect is that the duty to comply with the remade ADs is preserved, but enforcement details are not set out here.

The instrument does not set out any penalties, offence provisions or enforcement procedures in its text. It is an administrative instrument that effects revocation and remaking of existing Airworthiness Directives; it does not, on its face, create new sanctioning language or specify how non‑compliance will be enforced.

Because the instrument is made under subregulation 39.001(1) of the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998, the legal authority for both the making of Airworthiness Directives and for enforcement of aviation safety requirements sits within the wider Civil Aviation Safety Regulations framework. The instrument itself is a mechanism to renew the legal form of ADs, and it does not displace or replace the enforcement powers that are available under those Regulations or under any other relevant civil aviation statute. The instrument therefore leaves enforcement and sanctioning to the statutory regime that governs AD compliance, rather than embedding enforcement provisions in the revocation/remaking instrument.

Practical enforcement consequences for operators derive from the status of the remade ADs as separate instruments. Once remade, each AD will be an instrument that must be complied with, and failure to comply with an AD may be actionable under the wider regulatory powers available to CASA, including any contraventions, administrative notices or directions provided for in the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations or associated legislation. However, the instrument itself contains no language specifying what enforcement steps CASA might take, what penalties may apply, or what procedural steps are to be followed in the event of non-compliance.

Administrative record and audit implications. The act of revoking and remaking ADs as separate instruments will create a contemporaneous administrative record. That record will be relevant to compliance oversight, audits, and any enforcement proceedings that may later be brought under the statutory enforcement regime. The Schedule’s annotations (CANCELLED, superseded, amendments) are part of that record, and enforcement authorities will need to confirm the current operative instrument for any given requirement before taking compliance action.

No transitional enforcement relief specified. The instrument does not provide for transitional periods, temporary exemptions or deferred compliance in relation to the remade ADs. If affected parties require clarity on enforcement timing or seek relief, such matters would need to be resolved under the broader regulatory framework or by administrative engagement with CASA.

This instrument operates within the Civil Aviation regulatory architecture and cites one explicit statutory touchpoint: subregulation 39.001(1) of the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998. The instrument’s legal force derives from that delegated authority, and consequently its effect must be read in the context of the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations and other related aviation law instruments that govern airworthiness, enforcement, and administrative procedure.

Relation to the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998. The instrument expressly states that it is made under subregulation 39.001(1) of the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998. That subregulation is the authoritative source for the delegate’s power to make and revoke Airworthiness Directives. Therefore the instrument is a derivative administrative act under the CASR framework. Any rights, obligations, enforcement powers or review mechanisms that apply to ADs will stem from that regulatory regime rather than from this document alone.

Interaction with specific ADs and their prior publications. The instrument revokes the ADs listed in Schedule 1, and simultaneously remakes them as separate instruments attached to this instrument. The Note says the remade ADs are identical to the latest published edition of the Directive. That means that, for legal effect, the instrument operates to replace older references or older published forms with newly made instruments that are substantively identical to the most recent published versions. The instrument therefore interacts with prior publications by withdrawing the prior instrument forms from the register and substituting separately made instruments that reflect the latest published content.

Impact on administrative registers and publication. By remaking the ADs as separate instruments and attaching them, the instrument requires CASA’s administrative registers and published AD catalogues to reflect the new instrument identifiers and their attached content. The Schedule itself records amendment history and cancellation annotations, which will need to be reconciled with other statutory instruments, registers and any legislative or administrative compilations that hold AD-related data.

No express interaction with non-aviation laws stated. The instrument contains no reference to interaction with statutes outside the CASR regime, no cross-references to taxation, contractual or property law, and no express interaction with criminal laws beyond the implicit link to enforcement powers in the broader regulatory framework. Any such interactions, for example under contract law between lessor and lessee affected by an AD-imposed modification, will arise from external legal domains and are not addressed here.

Supersession and cancellation relationships within the Schedule. Several Schedule entries are annotated “Superseded by …” or “CANCELLED”. Those annotations show that the instrument both recognises prior amendments and records decommissioned ADs. This internal Schedule information interacts with the legal recordkeeping function in other instruments and in CASA’s published AD register, and it will be relevant when parties seek to determine which particular AD instrument applies to a specific airframe.

No express change to enforcement framework. The instrument does not amend the enforcement or penalty provisions of the CASR or any other law. Therefore its interaction with other laws is limited to administrative substitution and replication of existing AD content under delegated authority, conserving substantive regulatory obligations while altering legal form.

This instrument is dated 20 December 2004 and explicitly records an administrative action taken in that year: the revocation and remaking of a suite of Airworthiness Directives for Fairchild (Swearingen) SA226 and SA227 series aeroplanes. The Schedule enumerates ADs and, in many entries, shows embedded amendment annotations such as “Amdt 1”, “Amdt 3”, “Amdt 4”, “Amdt 5”, and “Amdt 6”. Those amendment suffixes in the Schedule are an internal trace of each AD’s prior amendment history as recognised by the instrument. For example, AD/SWSA226/43 is recorded in the Schedule as “Supplemental Inspection Program and Life Limited Items AD/SWSA226/43 Amdt 6”, which shows that this AD had been amended up to Amendment 6 prior to the remaking event recorded here.

The Schedule also contains explicit cancellation and supersession notations. For example, some entries are annotated “CANCELLED”, others read “Superseded by DCA/SWSA226/17 - CANCELLED AD/SWSA226/3”, and several items are annotated with “CANCELLED - Incorporated into …” or similar phrasing. Those entries signal that at various points in the administrative timeline certain ADs were declared cancelled, superseded or incorporated into other instruments. The current instrument records those statuses in the Schedule for reference, and it simultaneously revokes and remakes the listed ADs, whether they are active, superseded or cancelled, as part of the housekeeping exercise.

The Note to the instrument directs that each attached AD is being remade “in exactly the same form as appears in the latest published edition of the Directive”. That instruction indicates that the remaking used the most recent published textual form of each AD, inclusive of prior amendments up to the date of remaking. Therefore the amendment history, as indicated by the Schedule annotations, is preserved insofar as the latest published edition of each AD already incorporated prior amendments.

No later amendments or repeals are recorded in this instrument itself. The document does not include post-2004 amendment entries. Any subsequent amendment history after the date of this instrument is not contained in this text, and to determine later changes one must consult the CASA register or later instruments.

The instrument’s structure effectively reissues each AD as a separate instrument that carries forward the amendment history embodied in the latest published edition. For parties reconstructing the amendment timeline, the Schedule serves both as an index and as a snapshot of cancellation and supersession relationships as of the date the instrument was made.

The instrument contains no mention of litigation, judicial review proceedings, enforcement actions, appeals, or court decisions. It is an administrative act that records revocation and remaking of Airworthiness Directives, and it does not refer to any judicial proceedings either involving the ADs listed or challenging the act of remaking them.

Because the instrument itself does not record litigation, there is no litigation history provided in the text to analyse. If parties wish to know whether any of the ADs listed have been subject to judicial challenge, injunction, or appellate decision, that information is not contained in this instrument and would need to be sought in external case law databases, administrative law records, or CASA’s own files. The instrument does not supply any such references.

In short, the instrument is silent on litigation. It documents an administrative revision to the AD register without asserting or describing any involvement of courts, tribunals, or litigation processes.

This instrument contains a number of practical features and potential sources of confusion that users should note when attempting to determine current regulatory obligations.

Revocation and remaking in the same instrument. The instrument both revokes and remakes the ADs listed in Schedule 1. That dual action can create momentary uncertainty about which physical document to consult for operative requirements. The Note clarifies that the remade ADs are in exactly the same form as the latest published edition and are attached to this instrument. Nonetheless, practical compliance requires careful verification that the attached separately made AD is the operative instrument to be followed.

CANCELLED and Superseded annotations in Schedule 1. Schedule 1 lists numerous ADs and many entries are annotated “CANCELLED” or note that they were “Superseded by …”. The Schedule therefore includes items that are historically cancelled or superseded. It is not self-evident from the Schedule alone whether a “CANCELLED” entry is being remade as an active AD or is included for historical record. Users must therefore check the attached ADs and the instrument’s attachments to confirm whether a particular AD listed in the Schedule has been remade, cancelled, or superseded in the attached materials.

Amendment suffixes and version control. Many AD entries include amendment identifiers (for example “Amdt 1”, “Amdt 3”, “Amdt 6”). The Note says remaking is done “in exactly the same form as appears in the latest published edition of the Directive”, which implies that the latest amendment is incorporated in the remade AD. Nevertheless, operators must be vigilant about version control, ensuring that the remade AD they rely upon corresponds to the amendment level they believe is current.

Attachments are decisive. Because this instrument remakes the ADs as separate attached instruments, the attachments are the authoritative sources to determine current obligations. A common mistake would be to rely on an older printed copy or on a tertiary compilation that does not reflect the remaking. The instrument’s administrative nature makes it necessary to consult the attached remade ADs to confirm current requirements.

Ambiguity as to which ADs are attached. The Schedule records many items, but the instrument’s body states it revokes the ADs mentioned in Schedule 1 and makes, as separate instruments, each AD mentioned in Schedule 1 and attached. Practically, that language suggests each item listed is attached and remade, but the presence of “CANCELLED” and “Superseded” entries raises the question whether those particular entries were attached as active instruments or merely recorded in the Schedule for completeness. Practitioners should confirm the attachments referenced by the instrument, and not assume all Schedule entries carry identical operative status.

Operational impact varies by title. The Schedule includes a wide array of AD subject matters such as placards, inspections, life limits and structural inspections. The practical compliance consequence for any particular operator depends on the substantive content of the corresponding remade AD; the Schedule titles give an indicator but do not substitute for the full text of the AD. Failure to inspect the attached AD text could lead to missing precise compliance intervals, parts identification, or approved procedures.

No enforcement language within the instrument. Because this instrument does not specify enforcement steps or penalties, some stakeholders may misinterpret the absence of enforcement provisions as signalling a relaxation of compliance requirements. That would be incorrect. The enforcement regime remains grounded in the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations, and the remade ADs retain whatever enforceable requirements were in the latest published editions.

Record-keeping and audit implications. The act of remaking ADs as separate instruments will change the official instrument identifiers and the way ADs appear in CASA records. Operators, lessors, insurers and financiers should update their compliance registers and maintenance programmes to reflect the remade instruments to avoid ambiguity during audit or sale processes.

This instrument does not itself set out specific maintenance actions, inspection intervals or modification procedures. Compliance therefore requires a procedural approach: identify the remade ADs attached to this revocation/remaking instrument, and then follow the substantive requirements specified in each attached AD, which are remade “in exactly the same form as appears in the latest published edition of the Directive” (see Note).

Step 1, confirm the applicable remade ADs. Consult Schedule 1 to identify ADs that relate to Fairchild (Swearingen) SA226 and SA227 series aeroplanes. Then obtain the attached remade AD documents that the instrument purports to make as separate instruments. Do not rely solely on an older printed AD or a tertiary compilation; the attached remade ADs are the authoritative instruments to be followed.

Step 2, read each remade AD for operative requirements. For each attached AD, determine the exact compliance obligations, including scope, affected part numbers or serial numbers (if specified), required inspections, modification procedures, placard installations, life limits, and any timelines or compliance windows. Many Schedule titles indicate the subject matter, for example “Main Landing Gear Uplock Roller - Inspection and Modification AD/SWSA226/9” or “Supplemental Inspection Program and Life Limited Items AD/SWSA226/43 Amdt 6”, which signals the kinds of obligations to expect in the full AD text.

Step 3, incorporate AD requirements into maintenance and continuing airworthiness programmes. Update maintenance control documentation, scheduled maintenance plans, and continuing airworthiness management systems to incorporate each remade AD’s requirements. Ensure maintenance organisations and certifying staff are briefed on which AD texts are current and on the precise procedural steps, parts and approvals required.

Step 4, ensure record-keeping and certification of compliance. Where a remade AD requires inspection, modification or part replacement, record the compliance action fully in the aircraft’s maintenance records in accordance with usual civil aviation record-keeping practice. The remaking of an AD as a separate instrument does not remove the need to certify and document work performed under that AD.

Step 5, confirm status of items marked CANCELLED or Superseded. If a Schedule entry for a particular AD is annotated “CANCELLED” or “Superseded by …”, verify the attached material to confirm whether the AD has continuing operative effect or is recorded for historical purposes. Do not assume cancellation without reviewing the attached instruments.

Step 6, liaise with CASA where there is uncertainty. The instrument is a CASA delegate act and therefore CASA is the relevant regulatory authority. If an operator, owner or maintenance organisation is unsure which instrument applies or has questions about the scope or interpretation of a remade AD, seek clarification from CASA. The instrument itself records the delegate and the regulatory basis (subregulation 39.001(1) of the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998), and CASA is the body responsible for AD administration.

Step 7, account for contractual and third-party impacts. Where modifications, placards, life limits or inspections affect aircraft availability, residual value or contractual commitments, coordinate with lessors, insurers, financiers and other stakeholders to ensure that AD compliance is reflected in contractual obligations and insurance disclosures.

Step 8, maintain version control and monitor for future amendments. Because the remade ADs are expressed to mirror the latest published editions as of the remaking date, a prudent compliance practice is to monitor CASA’s AD register for subsequent amendments, cancellations or supersessions. Update compliance registers and maintenance procedures promptly in response to any future changes.

In short, compliance with this instrument requires locating the remade ADs attached pursuant to this revocation/remaking act, then executing the substantive requirements contained in those separately made instruments, and keeping contemporaneous records that evidence compliance under the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations framework.