[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 29 (Monday, February 12, 2018)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 5965-5966]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-02556]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Aviation Administration
14 CFR Part 71
[Docket No. FAA-2017-0783; Airspace Docket No. 17-AEA-13]
Proposed Revocation of Class E Airspace; Seven Springs, PA, and
Somerset, PA
AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.
ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).
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SUMMARY: This action proposes to remove Class E airspace at Seven
Springs, PA, as Seven Springs Borough Airport has been abandoned, and
controlled airspace is no longer required. This proposal would also
remove reference to the Seven Springs, PA, Class E airspace area from
the Somerset County Airport, Somerset, PA, description, and update the
geographic coordinates of Somerset County Airport to coincide with the
FAA's database. This action would enhance the safety and management of
controlled airspace within the national airspace system.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before March 29, 2018.
ADDRESSES: Send comments on this rule to: U.S. Department of
Transportation, Docket Operations, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West
Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-0001;
Telephone: (800) 647-5527, or (202) 366-9826. You must identify the
Docket No. FAA-2017-0783; Airspace Docket No. 17-AEA-13, at the
beginning of your comments. You may also submit comments through the
internet at http://www.regulations.gov. You may review the public
docket containing the proposal, any comments received, and any final
disposition in person in the Dockets Office between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00
p.m., Monday through Friday, except federal holidays.
FAA Order 7400.11B, Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, and
subsequent amendments can be viewed on line at http://www.faa.gov/air_traffic/publications/. For further information, you can contact the
Airspace Policy Group, Federal Aviation Administration, 800
Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20591; telephone: (202) 267-
8783. The Order is also available for inspection at the National
Archives and Records Administration (NARA). For information on the
availability of FAA Order 7400.11B at NARA, call (202) 741-6030, or go
to https://www.archives.gov/federal-register/cfr/ibr-locations.html.
FAA Order 7400.11, Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, is
published yearly and effective on September 15.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John Fornito, Operations Support
Group, Eastern Service Center, Federal Aviation Administration, 1701
Columbia Ave., College Park, GA 30337; telephone (404) 305-6364.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Authority for This Rulemaking
The FAA's authority to issue rules regarding aviation safety is
found in Title 49 of the United States Code. Subtitle I, Section 106
describes the authority of the FAA Administrator. Subtitle VII,
Aviation Programs, describes in more detail the scope of the agency's
authority. This proposed rulemaking is promulgated under the authority
described in Subtitle VII, part A, Subpart I, Section 40103. Under that
section, the FAA is charged with prescribing regulations to assign the
use of airspace necessary to ensure the safety of aircraft and the
efficient use of airspace. This regulation is within the scope of that
authority as it would remove Class E airspace extending upward from 700
feet above the surface at Seven Springs Borough Airport, Seven Springs,
PA, due to the closing of the airport.
Comments Invited
Interested persons are invited to comment on this rulemaking by
submitting such written data, views, or arguments, as they may desire.
Comments that provide the factual basis supporting the views and
suggestions presented are particularly helpful in developing reasoned
regulatory decisions on the proposal. Comments are specifically invited
on the overall regulatory, aeronautical, economic, environmental, and
energy-related aspects of the proposal.
Communications should identify both docket numbers (FAA Docket No.
FAA-2017-0783 and Airspace Docket No. 17-AEA-13) and be submitted in
triplicate to the DOT Docket Operations (see ADDRESSES section for
address and phone number). You may also submit comments through the
internet at http://www.regulations.gov.
[[Page 5966]]
Persons wishing the FAA to acknowledge receipt of their comments on
this action must submit with those comments a self-addressed stamped
postcard on which the following statement is made: ``Comments to FAA
Docket No. FAA-2017-0783; Airspace Docket No. 17-AEA-13.'' The postcard
will be date/time stamped and returned to the commenter.
All communications received before the specified closing date for
comments will be considered before taking action on the proposed rule.
The proposal contained in this notice may be changed in light of the
comments received. All comments submitted will be available for
examination in the public docket both before and after the comment
closing date. A report summarizing each substantive public contact with
FAA personnel concerned with this rulemaking will be filed in the
docket.
Availability of NPRMs
An electronic copy of this document may be downloaded from and
comments submitted through http://www.regulations.gov. Recently
published rulemaking documents can also be accessed through the FAA's
web page at http://www.faa.gov/air_traffic/publications/airspace_amendments/.
You may review the public docket containing the proposal, any
comments received, and any final disposition in person in the Dockets
Office (see the ADDRESSES section for address and phone number) between
9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, except federal
holidays. An informal docket may also be examined between 8:00 a.m. and
4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, except federal holidays at the office
of the Eastern Service Center, Federal Aviation Administration, Room
350, 1701 Columbia Avenue, College Park, Georgia 30337.
Availability and Summary of Documents for Incorporation by Reference
This document proposes to amend FAA Order 7400.11B, Airspace
Designations and Reporting Points, dated August 3, 2017, and effective
September 15, 2017. FAA Order 7400.11B is publicly available as listed
in the ADDRESSES section of this document. FAA Order 7400.11B lists
Class A, B, C, D, and E airspace areas, air traffic service routes, and
reporting points
The Proposal
The FAA is considering an amendment to Title 14, Code of Federal
Regulations (14 CFR) part 71 to remove Class E airspace extending
upward from 700 feet above the surface at Seven Springs Borough
Airport, Seven Springs, PA, as the airport has been abandoned.
Therefore, the airspace is no longer necessary. Also, this action would
remove the words ``excluding that portion that coincides with the Seven
Springs, PA, Class E airspace area'' from the regulatory text In Class
E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface for
Somerset County Airport, Somerset, PA, and update the geographic
coordinates of Somerset County Airport, to be in concert with the FAA's
aeronautical database.
Class E airspace designations are published in Paragraph 6005 of
FAA Order 7400.11B, dated August 3, 2017, and effective September 15,
2017, which is incorporated by reference in 14 CFR 71.1. The Class E
airspace designation listed in this document will be published
subsequently in the Order.
Regulatory Notices and Analyses
The FAA has determined that this proposed regulation only involves
an established body of technical regulations for which frequent and
routine amendments are necessary to keep them operationally current.
It, therefore, (1) is not a ``significant regulatory action'' under
Executive Order 12866; (2) is not a ``significant rule'' under DOT
Regulatory Policies and Procedures (44 FR 11034; February 26, 1979);
and (3) does not warrant preparation of a Regulatory Evaluation as the
anticipated impact is so minimal. Since this is a routine matter that
will only affect air traffic procedures and air navigation, it is
certified that this proposed rule, when promulgated, will not have a
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities
under the criteria of the Regulatory Flexibility Act.
Environmental Review
This proposal would be subject to an environmental analysis in
accordance with FAA Order 1050.1F, ``Environmental Impacts: Policies
and Procedures'' prior to any FAA final regulatory action.
Lists of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 71
Airspace, Incorporation by reference, Navigation (air).
The Proposed Amendment
In consideration of the foregoing, the Federal Aviation
Administration proposes to amend 14 CFR part 71 as follows:
PART 71--DESIGNATION OF CLASS A, B, C, D, AND E AIRSPACE AREAS; AIR
TRAFFIC SERVICE ROUTES; AND REPORTING POINTS
0
1. The authority citation for part 71 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 49 U.S.C. 106(f), 106(g); 40103, 40113, 40120; E.O.
10854, 24 FR 9565, 3 CFR, 1959-1963 Comp., p. 389.
Sec. 71.1 [Amended]
0
2. The incorporation by reference in 14 CFR 71.1 of FAA Order 7400.11B,
Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, dated August 3, 2017,
effective September 15, 2017, is amended as follows:
Paragraph 6005 Class E Airspace Areas Extending Upward From 700
Feet or More Above the Surface of the Earth.
* * * * *
AEA PA E5 Seven Springs, PA [Removed]
AEA PA E5 Somerset, PA [Amended]
Somerset County Airport, PA
(Lat. 40[deg]02'20'' N, long. 79[deg]00'54'' W)
Stoystown NDB
(Lat. 40[deg]05'09'' N, long. 78[deg]55'00'' W)
That airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface
within a 6.4-mile radius of Somerset County Airport and within 3.1
miles each side of the 058[deg] bearing from the Stoystown NDB
extending from the 6.4-mile radius to 9.6 miles northeast of the NDB
and 4 miles each side of the 236[deg] bearing from the Somerset
County Airport extending from the 6.4-mile radius to 9.5 miles
southwest of the airport.
Issued in College Park, Georgia, on February 1, 2018.
Ryan W. Almasy,
Manager, Operations Support Group, Eastern Service Center, Air Traffic
Organization.
[FR Doc. 2018-02556 Filed 2-9-18; 8:45 am]
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