AD 96-18-05 Amendment 39-9729

This amendment supersedes an existing priority letter airworthiness directive (AD), applicable to Bell Helicopter Textron, A Division of Textron Canada Ltd. (BHTC) Model 206L, 206L-1, and 206L-3 helicopters, that currently requires a visual inspection of the tailboom skin in the areas around the nutplates and in the areas of the tailboom drive shaft cover retention clips for cracks and corrosion using a 10-power or higher magnifying glass. This amendment requires the same actions as the existing AD, but corrects a part number that was incorrectly stated in that AD. This amendment is prompted by a recent accident and several reports of fatigue cracks in the tailboom skin in the areas around the nutplates for the tail rotor fairing and in the areas of the tail rotor drive shaft cover retention clips. The actions specified by this AD are intended to prevent failure of the tailboom and subsequent loss of control of the helicopter.