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Airworthiness Directive 2021-16-18

recurring
Official AD 2021-16-18 · FR doc 2021-23870 · 2021-11-03 · airframe

Airworthiness Directives; Airbus SAS Airplanes

What this AD requires

The FAA is superseding Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2020-21- 05, which applied to all Airbus SAS Model A330-200 Freighter, A330-200, A330-300, A330-900, A340-200, A340-300, A340-500, and A340-600 series airplanes. AD 2020-21-05 required repetitive inspections of certain fuel pumps for cavitation erosion, replacement if necessary, revision of the operator's minimum equipment list (MEL), and accomplishment of certain maintenance actions related to defueling and ground fuel transfer operations. This AD retains the requirements of AD 2020-21-05, revises certain compliance times, and expands the applicability; as specified in a European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) AD, which is incorporated by reference. This AD was prompted by reports of a fuel pump showing cavitation erosion that exposed the fuel pump power supply wires, and by a determination that certain compliance times need to be revised and that additional airplanes are subject to the unsafe condition. The FAA is issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.

Repetitive inspection. Re-inspect. The next-due date/hours depend on this aircraft’s time in service — a records report computes it from the logbooks.

Which aircraft AD 2021-16-18 applies to

MakesAirbus Sas
ModelsA330-223F, A330-243F, A330-201, A330-202, A330-203, A330-223, A330-243, A330-301, A330-302, A330-303, A330-321, A330-322, A330-323, A330-341, A330-342, A330-343, A330-841, A330-941, A340-211, A340-212, A340-213, A340-311, A340-312, A340-313, A340-541, A340-642, A330, A340

Whether AD 2021-16-18 actually applies to your aircraft (by serial and installed parts) and whether it’s already complied with comes from that aircraft’s records.

How AD compliance is recorded

A valid compliance record (14 CFR 43.9) states:

Method of compliance — The specific action taken (inspected, replaced, modified) and to what revision.
Date — When the work was done.
Aircraft time — Total time in service / tach at compliance — how recurring next-due is computed.
Signature & certificate — The A&P/IA who returned it to service, with certificate number.
Is AD 2021-16-18 complied with on your aircraft?

Tailplate reads a tail number’s logbooks and matches every applicable AD — including this one — to its compliance evidence, with recurring next-due dates computed.

Look up a tail number →Read the full directive (Federal Register)

Applicability is derived from the FAA directive corpus and is advisory, not a legal airworthiness determination. Compliance is established only from an aircraft’s actual records.