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Please find attached hereto an EASA Safety Information Bulletin (SIB) which has already been posted on
our web site and can be viewed at https://ad.easa.europa.eu/ad/2017-17R1 .
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EASA SIB No.: 2017-17R1
Safety Information Bulletin
Airworthiness
SIB No.: 2017-17R1
Issued: 24 January 2018
Subject: Kobe Steel Ltd Material – Falsified Inspection Data
Ref. Publications:
Press Releases by Kobe Steel Ltd, dated 08 October 2017 and 13 October 2017 on non-conforming
materials.
Applicability:
Design, production and repair approval holders of certified products (see Note 1 of this SIB), parts
or appliances, and components thereof, using materials supplied by Kobe Steel.
Note 1: Products are aircraft, engines and propellers. Kobe Steel Ltd material used in products,
parts and appliances, and components thereof are hereafter referred to as ‘affected parts’ in this
SIB.
Description:
As reported in recent media articles, Kobe Steel Ltd, a Japanese metals producer, found that their
workers have, possibly over a period of many years, fabricated the inspection data on certain parts
and shipped those parts, possibly not meeting the customer's specification, to a wide range of
companies manufacturing a wide range of products, parts and appliances, and components
thereof.
The Japanese Authorities, including the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau (JCAB), are investigating the
matter in order to establish the scope and extent of the problem, regarding affected parts and
customers impacted and the extent of any deviations from specifications. Several affected
organisations have already been informed and have indicated they will evaluate the concern,
following the normal procedures for ensuring continued airworthiness.
Since EASA SIB 2017-17 was issued, EASA was informed that Kobe Steel Ltd contacted the
potentially affected customers and provides them with the necessary information. The technical
investigation is still in progress and the partial results available to date allow to extend and clarify
the recommendations provided by this SIB. This SIB is revised accordingly.
Regulatory References:
Regulation (EC) 216/2008, Annex I, paragraph 1.a, Structures and materials, states that ‘the
integrity of the structure must be ensured throughout, and sufficiently beyond, the operational
envelope for the aircraft, including its propulsion system, and maintained for the operational life
This is information only. Recommendations are not mandatory.
TE.CAP.00117-006 © European Aviation Safety Agency. All rights reserved. ISO9001 Certified. Page 1 of 3
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EASA SIB No.: 2017-17R1
of the aircraft.’ Regulation (EU) 748/2012, Part 21.A.31, Type design, paragraph (a) 2., states that
the type design shall consist of ‘information on materials and processes and on methods of
manufacture and assembly of the product necessary to ensure the conformity of the product.’
Article 4(4) of Regulation (EU) 376/2014 tasks the Agency with the establishment of a mandatory
reporting system. Regulation (EU) 2015/1018 specifies that one of the occurrences which are
subject to reporting is ‘the use of products, components or materials, from unknown, suspect
origin, or unserviceable critical components’ – suspected unapproved parts (SUP).
At this time, the safety concern described in this SIB is not considered to be an unsafe condition
that would warrant Airworthiness Directive (AD) action under Regulation (EU) 748/2012, Part
21.A.3B.
Recommendation(s):
Until further information becomes available, allowing refinement of the scope of the problem and
determination of its potential significance to safety, EASA makes the following recommendations:
- All organisations that may have specified or used Kobe Steel products should do a thorough
review of their supply chains in order to identify if, and when, Kobe Steel products have been
used in their product designs and fabrications.
Note 2: At this time, no definitive timescale has been identified during which this problem has
existed, so current production should be prioritised.
- In addition to informing their customers, production and repair approval holders are advised to
inform their competent authorities of the use of such materials, if not already known by the
competent authority.
- Design approval holders are advised to establish the scope of use of affected parts in its
products, paying particular attention to identifying such material usage in more critical
applications, e.g. Primary Structure, Principal Structural Elements, Critical Parts and Systems.
Where alternative suppliers are available, it is recommended to suspend use of Kobe Steel
products unless the potential impact of those Kobe Steel products on airworthiness of these
affected parts or repairs can be excluded.
- Design approval holders which have (at the time of issuance of this revised SIB) not yet been
contacted by Kobe Steel Ltd, but which have any reason to doubt the quality of material
manufactured by Kobe Steel Ltd, e.g. following internal quality checks in the design, production,
or repair process, etc, should contact Kobe Steel Ltd for clarification and to obtain all the
information necessary to ensure the airworthiness of design solutions under their
responsibility.
- Production or repair approval holders which have identified that Kobe Steel materials have
been used in their parts or repairs, but which have (at the time of issuance of this revised SIB)
not yet been contacted by the responsible design approval holders, should contact the
applicable design approval holder(s) to obtain further guidance to reduce the possible impact of
use of material(s) with unconfirmed quality.
This is information only. Recommendations are not mandatory.
TE.CAP.00117-006 © European Aviation Safety Agency. All rights reserved. ISO9001 Certified. Page 2 of 3
Proprietary document. Copies are not controlled. Confirm revision status through the EASA-Internet/Intranet.
An agency of the European Union
EASA SIB No.: 2017-17R1
- Design approval holders affected by the quality issue of materials produced by Kobe Steel
Ltd are recommended to establish the significance of the impact of using material(s) of
unconfirmed quality on the airworthiness of their parts and/or repairs and propose the
appropriate corrective actions to EASA using existing design, production, or continued
airworthiness interfaces/channels, as appropriate.
Contact(s):
For further information, or to submit reports of finding affected parts, contact the EASA Safety
Investigation and Reporting Section, Safety Management Directorate:
E-mail:
[email protected].
This is information only. Recommendations are not mandatory.
TE.CAP.00117-006 © European Aviation Safety Agency. All rights reserved. ISO9001 Certified. Page 3 of 3
Proprietary document. Copies are not controlled. Confirm revision status through the EASA-Internet/Intranet.
An agency of the European Union