Interesting thread, I’m looking to put non-standard tyres and rims on my PA32 – it’s FG, so identical to a Cherry Six – for which an STC and other FA exist.
Unsure as to whether this will make the process easy, normal or impossible!
The contents of an STC (not the STC number) can be used as data to support a field approval. That’s what I did with the Sandel SN3500 – used a C421 STC. That STC was drawn up for me by a retired senior FSDO inspector.
Peter wrote:
The contents of an STC (not the STC number) can be used as data to support a field approval.
I would be very careful with that. The FAA has ruled that the “approval data” found in STCs and Field Approval 337 forms is Proprietary Information and thus copying of such is a Copyright AND Intellectual infringement.
I hasten to add that I’m NOT a lawyer, just saying …
If that was taken literally, it would mean an Installation Manual cannot be used as data either, which would pretty well put an end to the Field Approval route, not just because most of the authors are (a) dead (b) uncontactable (c) unwilling to assist. Everything any human writes is automatically copyright, for some x years after the author’s death. So clearly it is more complicated. In aviation certification, most of the data is clearly intended to be placed into the public domain. And with STCs is gets more ambiguous when you get onto the illegal restraint of trade implicit in restricting an STC to just a [manufacturer’s] dealer which is a fairly standard clause in new STCs which otherwise permit its free use for an installation.
