Airworthiness Directives; Eurocopter France Model EC120B Helicopters
We are adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for the Eurocopter France (ECF) Model EC120B helicopters. This AD results from a mandatory continuing airworthiness information (MCAI) AD issued by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), which is the Technical Agent for the Member States of the European Community. The MCAI AD states that operators have reported that latching push buttons on the Emergency Floatation Gear Lighting and Ancillary Control Unit (LACU) used to arm the emergency floatation gear are unreliable, and the `FLOAT ARM' pushbutton does not latch in the depressed (LACU armed) position. These actions are intended to prohibit flight over water if a functional test indicates that the emergency floatation gear cannot be armed, which would preclude deployment of the floats in an emergency water ditching that could result in helicopter damage and a fatality.