There is an interesting article concerning potential new rulemaking contained in the EAA AirVenture, Volume 9, Number 6, concerning the subject. Some of you with special skills, or perhaps someone that can collect the experience of this group might want to follow-up on this.
It might be appropriate for this group, either through the club, or some of the members joing together to take advantage of this proposal.
It will be interesting to follow the progress of this idea.
Bob Young N7488M

Bob is this in a magazine or an email or online article?

It is an online article. I found it on the EAA website in the Index of all articles from EAA Airventure Today, for August 1, 2008.

www.airventure.org/2008/6Fri1/ders.html

That is the most reasonable, effective, and practical approach to solving the vintage aircraft maintenance dilemmas that I have ever heard a proposal for, don't you think??

Thats some of the best news I've heard recently in aviation. I know AK could use some of those VDERs.

Here is a draft of Advisory Circular 23-27, Parts and Materials Substitution For Vintage Airplanes. It is in draft form and can not be used as acceptable data to do anything yet.

"Interesting". What does it mean for 175 owners? Does it imply that the FAA sees the value of the field approval process working in conjunction with DAR/M and the new advisory circulars to try and continue making repairs/alterations for the betterment of the vintage fleet?

This is my take on the AC, it is still in draft form and may change before it gets signed and approved.

When approved it will provide a method for substantiating parts and materials substitutions when the aircraft is no longer supported by the manufacturer or current TC holder, or when the manufacturer or aftermarket world does not produce a replacement part. It gives the owners/maintainers of "vintage" aircraft a means of replacing certain items that you can no longer get.

Some parts and materials will be able to be substituted as a "minor" alterations that will only require a maintenance record entry.

If the part or material does not meet the reuirements for a "minor" alteration and it is listed in the AC as something that can be substituted, then it should help in streamlining or clarifying the field approval process.

I do not know how it will affect the management DARs yet, currently they can not do field approvals.