US: Court decision could spur maintenance manual fight

A US court ruling has determined FAA is not obligated to force an aerospace manufacturer to supply maintenance instructions to a repair station, potentially kicking off a new round of debates between manufacturers and repair stations over so-called instructions for continued airworthiness (ICA). The issue pits Piedmont Propulsion Systems against UTC Aerospace Systems (UTAS). North Carolina-based Piedmont repairs Hamilton Sundstrand 568F propellers found on several regional aircraft models. Piedmont has long sought ICA, or maintenance manuals, for a specific 568F procedure, court filings show. In 2014, after "several years" of trying, Piedmont went to FAA. In November 2016, FAA determined that Piedmont was entitled to the ICA—covering compression-wrap removal and replacement—and the agency said it would "pursue distribution" of the manuals with UTAS. Hamilton Sundstrand is now part of UTAS. Story has more details of case. <br/>