Airworthiness Directives; Airbus Helicopters Deutschland GmbH (Previously Eurocopter Deutschland GbmH) (Airbus Helicopters) Helicopters

We are superseding Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2012-10-53 for Eurocopter Deutschland GmbH (ECD) (now Airbus Helicopters) Model EC135P1, EC135P2, EC135P2+, EC135T1, EC135T2, and EC135T2+ helicopters. AD 2012-10-53 required, before further flight and at specified intervals, checking and inspecting the upper and lower main rotor hub (MRH) shaft flanges for a crack, and inspecting the lower hub-shaft flange bolt attachment areas for a crack. Since we issued AD 2012-10- 53, it has been determined that it is safe to increase the visual inspection intervals of the MRH shaft flanges from 10 hours time-in- service (TIS) to 50 hours TIS and remove the inspection of the lower MRH shaft flange bolt attachment areas. This new AD continues to require checking and inspecting the upper and lower MRH shaft flanges for a crack. These actions are intended to detect a crack on the MRH shaft flange, which if not corrected, could result in failure of the MRH and subsequent loss of control of the helicopter.