When should the airworthiness aspects of a proposed design change be assessed?
The airworthiness aspects of all proposed design changes must be assessed prior to its approval for use with in-service aeronautical products. The process for design change certification depends on the airworthiness significance of the proposed design change. To determine the category of a proposed design change, an assessment of significance by an authorized individual is required. A reassessment of the significance should be conducted periodically throughout the design change development process to ensure the initial category assigned remains valid. The Technical Airworthiness Authority (TAA) always reserves the right to review the assignment of a category to a proposed design change particularly when it comes to the assessment of extent. Therefore, if any doubt exists regarding the significance assigned, the proposed design change should be referred to the TAA for assessment.
