ASTM F3651_F3651M-23 - Standard Practice for Determining Safe-Life, Inspection Threshold and Recurring Inspection Intervals

1.1 This practice provides guidance to determine scatter factors to establish either the safe-life, or inspection threshold, and inspection intervals to be published in the Airworthiness Limitation section of the maintenance manual in order to maintain continued airworthiness. The guidance materials presented herein for a means of compliance based on cyclic testing, damage tolerance testing, fatigue analysis, or damage tolerance analysis, or combinations thereof. The material was developed through open consensus of international experts in general aviation. The information was created by focusing on Levels 1, 2, 3 and 4 Normal Category aeroplanes. The content may be more broadly applicable; it is the responsibility of the applicant to substantiate broader applicability as a specific means of compliance.

1.2 An applicant intending to propose this information as Means of Compliance for a design approval must seek guidance from their respective oversight authority (for example, published guidance from applicable civil aviation authorities, or CAAs) concerning the acceptable use and application thereof. For information on which oversight authorities have accepted this standard (whole or in part) as an acceptable Means of Compliance to their regulatory requirements (hereinafter “the Rules”), refer to the ASTM Committee F44 web page (www.astm.org/COMMITTEE/F44.htm).

1.3 Units—This document may present information in either SI units, English Engineering units, or both; the values stated in each system may not be exact equivalents. Each system shall be used independently of the other; combining values from the two systems may result in nonconformance with the standard.

1.4 This standard does not purport to address all of the safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appropriate safety, health, and environmental practices and determine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use.

1.5 This international standard was developed in accordance with internationally recognized principles on standardization established in the Decision on Principles for the Development of International Standards, Guides and Recommendations issued by the World Trade Organization Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) Committee.