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Dassault Falcon 50, 2000 and 2000EX aircraft have a new proposed airworthiness directive from the FAA after a manufacturing-quality escape allowed high-temperature oxidation in main landing gear torque-link components. The proposal covers 683 U.S.-registered aircraft; the FAA estimates 178 of them already have an affected part installed and would need the gear replaced. Comments are due Dec. 28, 2026. According to the FAA, a manufacturing-quality escape may have allowed high-temperature oxidation to occur in certain upper and lower torque links. The concern is that the condition could eventually lead to main landing gear failure. The proposed corrective action is replacement of the affected landing gear with a serviceable unit that meets the FAA's requirements. The proposal highlights the operational consequences that can follow a manufacturing-quality issue years after an aircraft enters service. Main landing gear components are among the most critical structural systems on an aircraft, making corrective action difficult to defer once a problem is identified. If the proposal is adopted, affected Falcon operators could face a significant maintenance event involving landing gear replacement or rebuild work, timed against the 7,100-flight-cycle limit on the affected part. Labor associated with the replacement is estimated to take 36 hours per aircraft, or approximately $3,060. Replacement landing gear could cost as much as $300,000 per aircraft, while rebuilding with new torque-link assemblies is estimated at approximately $48,990. The manufacturer indicated that warranty coverage may offset some costs for certain operators. What operators need to know The 36-hour labor estimate undersells the real-world downtime. Parts availability, shop capacity and scheduling around other maintenance could keep an affected Falcon out of service well past the hours figure alone, and flight departments, charter operators and corporate teams running these types should start weighing that now rather than after the AD is final. With comments due Dec. 28, operators still have a window to flag cost or implementation concerns to the FAA, but the underlying fix doesn't wait on that process. Any Falcon 50, 2000 or 2000EX with an affected torque link is already on a 7,100-cycle clock.