A current copy of the Complete Listing of manuals Copy of outstanding and completed change entry certification records (CECRs) Q18. Q19. What minimum information must appear on the technical publication library (TPL) stamp? What does the transaction file show about a central technical publication library (CTPL)? UPDATING PUBLICATIONS LEARNING OBJECTIVE: Describe the methods used to update technical publications. Modern aviation technology is constantly changing. What is considered to be the latest word today may be modified, totally revised, or otherwise made obsolete tomorrow. This condition is not always planned or intended, but it must be accepted and dealt with. The degree of urgency of updating publications depends upon the type of information involved and the frequency of reference to the affected directives or publications. REVISIONS AND CHANGES The two methods used to update technical manuals are revisions and changes. A revision is a complete reissue of an existing document with all change information incorporated. Normally, when a change or changes affect over 60 percent of a publication’s pages, a revision is issued. A revision is also issued when the manual usability is impaired because of change complexity. The revision of a manual requires an evaluation of technical manual condition, both physical and technical, and the release of a completely new edition of the manual. Revisions are prepared on a nonscheduled, as required basis. All manuals are reviewed periodically (at least once a year) to determine requirements for reissue. Revisions direct the supersedure and disposal of the revised document. A technical manual change is the official release of correction pages to a part or portion of an existing document. A change provides replacement pages for that area of the manual affected by a change action. This approach provides both an economical and expedient method of issuing new or correct material to the user. Upon receipt, you should remove the superseded pages and insert the new material. This action is required for paper manuals only. Changes to original manuals are issued as two basic types—routine changes and RACs. Routine changes are released periodically. A RAC is an expedited change action that is programmed for short turnaround and release time because of its relationship to safety, equipment damage, or danger to personnel. Routine Manual Changes A routine manual change is partial manual updating action that is issued as a corrective insert page (or pages) to an existing technical manual (printed manuals only). A routine manual change provides the user with information concerning a change in configuration, maintenance concept, or procedure. Rapid Action Changes (RACs) A RAC is prepared to disseminate urgent essential data that directly involves hazards to personnel, an impairment to safety of flight, aircraft grounding, mission capability, equipment or property damage, or maintenance capability, including that for high value and repairable items. There are two types of RACs— interim and formal. An interim rapid action change (IRAC) is prepared in naval message format. IRACs should be maintained with the affected technical manual until the formal change is received and should be placed directly behind the title page of the manual. Formal RACs are prepared as replacements for IRACs. Formal RACs are prepared in the same style and format as the technical manual being changed. When an IRAC is received, annotate the specific publication page to which the IRAC applies by drawing a vertical line in the margin opposite the affected text. The vertical line should extend for the length of the affected text. The IRAC number and the date-time- group of the IRAC message should also be annotated near the affected text. After making the appropriate annotation on the affected page. or pages, place a copy of the IRAC directly behind the title page of the applicable publication until you receive the formal RAC. To help manage IRACs, NATEC issues an IRAC Tracker that lists IRACs that were issued during the previous month. Upon receipt of a new IRAC Tracker, the CTPL librarian should perform a verification to ensure that the IRACs that should have been received were actually received. Formal RACs should be incorporated into the applicable manual immediately after receipt. When incorporating a formal RAC, verify previously issued 3-21