Airworthiness Directives; General Electric Company CF6-80E1 Series Turbofan Engines

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for General Electric Company (GE) CF6-80E1 series turbofan engines installed on Airbus Industrie A330 series airplanes. This AD requires a check of the holding torque of the thrust reverser actuation system (TRAS) locks, and if necessary a visual inspection of the TRAS lock flexible drive shafts, within 10 flight cycles after all aborted takeoffs in which the thrust reverser was deployed. This AD results from reports of operators finding several damaged TRAS lock flexible drive shafts during inspections and checks of the drive shafts. We are issuing this AD to prevent inadvertent in-flight deployment of the thrust reverser, which can result in loss of control of the airplane.