Final Piper Rudder AD Rejects Most Community Input
Final Piper Rudder AD Rejects Most Community Input
The FAA released the final version of Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2025-02-11. The AD requires the owners of most Piper high-wing aircraft with rudder posts made of 1025 carbon steel to upgrade to a rudder with a post made of 4130N low alloy steel. The affected model list includes a wide range of aircraft, from J-3 Cubs to PA-22 Tri-Pacers and Colts. The FAA estimates a total of 6,500 active aircraft will need their rudders replaced or modified.
Per the AD, compliance times are as follows:
| Category Type | Compliance Time |
|---|---|
| Category I Airplanes: Airplanes having both a rudder post mounted beacon light and a 150 or greater horsepower (hp) engine installed | Within 2 years after the effective date of this AD. |
| Category II Airplanes: Airplanes having either a rudder post mounted beacon light or a 150 or greater hp engine installed | Within 3 years after the effective date of this AD. |
| Category III Airplanes: All airplanes not in Category I or Category II that do not have a rudder post mounted beacon light and have an engine less than 150 hp and greater than 100 hp installed | Within 5 years after the effective date of this AD. |
| Category IV Airplanes: All airplanes not in Category I, II, or III that do not have a rudder post mounted beacon light and have an engine of 100 hp or below installed | Within 10 years after the effective date of this AD. |
Numerous commenters opposed the AD when it was proposed last year, including EAA and its Vintage Aircraft Association (VAA) division. VAA invested extensive time and resources into proposing an alternative on-condition testing technique, as well as an alternative strengthening method that was minimally invasive and would not require a fabric re-cover. EAA argued for the rescinding of the AD due to its being based on a small number of occurrences, including several uniquely modified aircraft, as well as covering many low-horsepower models that have no known history of failures.
In the end, the FAA disagreed with almost all comments that were critical of the AD and made almost no changes. The only significant concession was creating a new “Category IV” for aircraft such as the J-3 and PA-11 that have low-horsepower engines installed – not removing these aircraft from the applicability list but giving them a 10-year compliance time instead of 5 years.
EAA is now considering next steps. The AD preamble does note that the alternative inspection and repair techniques suggested by VAA and others may be considered as an alternative means of compliance (AMOC). EAA would lend support to these efforts, as well as evaluate other options for lessening the impact of this AD for our members.
