Service Newsletter: Subject
Service Newsletter: Subject
Service Newsletter: Subject
Goodrich Corporation
Acting by and through its Interiors business unit,
Goodrich Evacuation Systems, a UTC Aerospace Systems Company,
with offices at
3414 South 5th Street
Phoenix, Arizona 85040-1169, USA
SERVICE NEWSLETTER
TO: USERS OF UTAS (GOODRICH/PICO) EMERGENCY EVACUATION
SYSTEMS
1. Purpose
The purpose of this Service Newsletter (SNL) is to provide general guidance to Operators and Service
Centers/MROs (Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul) on the disposal of UTAS (Goodrich and PICO)
Emergency Evacuation Slide Systems after their useful life has ended for various reasons. These reasons
may include, but not limited to, critical components have reached the expiry, components that have wear
outside of the allowed design limits, significant damage beyond economic repair, early retirement,
subcomponent obsolescence, or any other reason that condemns the system.
The guidance provided in this Service Newsletter is equally applicable to any subassembly and/or
individual subcomponent of the evacuation slide system.
NOTE: Destruction and disposal of an evacuation slide system, subassembly, and/or components
shall be done in accordance with all applicable country specific laws and environmental
regulations. This service Newsletter attempts to provide manufacturer’s general guidance and
does not take precedence over any local or country-specific laws and regulations.
2. Background
There have been instances where aviation components permanently removed from service have made
their way back into the secondary aviation parts resale market. These non-airworthy parts, when installed
on an aircraft, poses significant risk to the safety of flight in addition to potentially violating aviation related
laws and regulations. As such, parts that have been permanently removed from service and identified as
non-salvageable require proper destruction and disposal to avoid being re-entered into service. These
parts shall be permanently destroyed or mutilated so as to render them unusable as originally intended or
make them non-repairable.
This document is the property of the UTC Aerospace Systems and is loaned with the understanding that neither this document, nor any
of the information it contains shall be reproduced, copied, used for the manufacture of any apparatus, or otherwise disclosed to anyone
outside the recipient’s business organization without prior written consent of UTC Aerospace Systems.
This document does not contain any export controlled techincal data.
SERVICE NEWSLETTER
3. Effectivity
A. This Service Newsletter is applicable to all UTAS (Goodrich and PICO) manufactured evacuation
systems, including the subassembly and components of the slide system, except for the evacuation
systems on the Airbus A380 platform.
B. This Service Newsletter overrides the general disposition guideline, if stated, in any UTAS (Goodrich
and PICO) Component Maintenance Manual (CMM), however the guidance here does not override
or supersede any aviation and environmental rules and regulations as applicable to the user or entity
performing destruction and disposal of the UTAS evacuation system and its components.
C. This Service Newsletter does not represent any regulatory agency enforced regulation or mandate.
This Service Newsletter provides the manufacturer’s guidance on destruction of an evacuation
system and its components.
The following is a list of key components generally found in UTAS manufactured evacuation systems,
which can be destroyed in accordance with the guidance provided in this Service Newsletter.
This is not a comprehensive list of entire evacuation system components. Refer to the applicable CMM for
a list of all system components that can be disassembled as an individual serviceable component.
(13) Manual air pump, knife, heaving ring/strap, etc. (if equipped)
This document does not contain any export controlled techincal data.
SERVICE NEWSLETTER
B. Inflation System
C. Packboard Assembly
(1) Packboard
The UTAS (Goodrich and PICO) evacuation system or its individual subassembly/components, once
retired or declared unfit for service, shall be disposed by permanently destroying through acceptable ways
of mutilating them. Mutilation shall be accomplished in such a manner that the part(s) become unusable
for their original intended use and cannot be reworked or camouflaged to provide the appearance of being
airworthy or serviceable.
When properly accomplished, the following are the acceptable mutilation methods, as applicable to the
respective part(s), to prevent non-salvageable parts or materials from being susceptible to reintroduction
into the marketplace as if they were airworthy parts.
(2) Perform a flat fire test per the applicable CMM. If the evacuation system cannot be flat fired,
remove and discharge the charged cylinder assembly per the applicable CMM.
(3) Disassemble the evacuation slide components per the applicable CMM.
(4) Drill 0.25 inch (6.35 mm) or larger holes in multiple locations all over the empty cylinder to a
point where the damage is beyond repair.
(5) Cut each end of the reservoir hose assembly in a manner that any re-joints will not maintain the
integrity of the hose.
(6) Mutilate the inflatable fabric in manner that the damage is beyond repair.
(7) Cut the head end and toe end of the slide lane fabric into separate pieces. The remaining
portion of the slide fabric shall be cut to multiple pieces in uneven shapes and formation to avoid
restitching or gluing together to its original shape and form.
(8) Slide packboard and other similar materials can be crushed beyond repair or permanently
deformed.
This document does not contain any export controlled techincal data.
SERVICE NEWSLETTER
(9) Metal parts shall be ground down, melted, saw-cut or torch-cut to permanently destroy key
integral features of the part.
(10) Evacuation systems that are equipped with ELT or radio beacons shall be disconnected from its
power source (battery) before being destroyed or discarded. Refer to the applicable CMM to
disconnect the power source from such equipment.
(11) Batteries, parts of survival kit and other environmental sensitive components shall be discarded
per applicable environmental and local regulations.
(12) Sea-anchor assembly, manual air pump, knife, heaving ring and other miscellaneous
components shall be destroyed using applicable methods so that they are permanently distorted
and unusable for service.
(13) Remove and destroy all identification labels from the girt and inflatable fabrics.
(14) Dispose of the evacuation system and its components in accordance with environmental and
local regulations.
NOTE: Follow all local environmental regulations for disposal of survival kit consumables
and signal flares.
6. Action
Operators are requested to complete the “Certificate of Destruction” (Appendix A) form in its entirety
and maintain for its own record keeping and any future reference.
If you need additional information on this subject, please contact your UTAS Field Service representative
or UTAS Interiors Product Support.
This document does not contain any export controlled techincal data.
SERVICE NEWSLETTER
APPENDIX A
CERTIFICATE OF DESTRUCTION
SYSTEM DESCRIPTION:
METHOD OF DESTRUCTION:
(Name of Airline/Operator)
This document does not contain any export controlled techincal data.