Proposed Modification of Class E Airspace for the Following Alaska Towns; Toksook Bay, AK; Unalakleet, AK; Wainwright, AK; and Yakutat, AK

AGENCY:

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION:

Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).

SUMMARY:

This action proposes to modify Class E airspace extending upward from 1,200 feet above the surface at Toksook Bay Airport, Toksook Bay, AK; Unalakleet Airport, Unalakleet, AK; Wainwright Airport, Wainwright, AK; and Yakutat Airport, Yakutat, AK. This proposal would add exclusionary language to the legal descriptions of these airports for Class E airspace extending beyond 12 miles from the shoreline, and would ensure the safety and management of aircraft within the National Airspace System.

DATES:

Comments must be received on or before September 17, 2018.

ADDRESSES:

Send comments on this proposal to the U.S. Department of Transportation, Docket Operations, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590; telephone: 1-800-647-5527, or (202) 366-9826. You must identify FAA Docket No. FAA-2017-0350; Airspace Docket No. 17-AAL-6, at the beginning of your comments. You may also submit comments through the internet at http://www.regulations.gov.

FAA Order 7400.11B, Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, and subsequent amendments can be viewed online 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 7400.11A 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:

Richard Roberts, Federal Aviation Administration, Operations Support Group, Western Service Center, 2200 S 216th St., Des Moines, WA 98198-6547; telephone (206) 231-2245.

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 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 amend Class E airspace extending upward from 1,200 feet above the surface at Toksook Bay Airport, AK; Unalakleet Airport, AK; Wainwright Airport, AK; and Yakutat Airport, AK, to support IFR operations in standard instrument approach and departure procedures at these airports and to limit Class E airspace to within 12 miles of the shoreline.

Comments Invited

Interested parties are invited to participate in this proposed 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 and be submitted in triplicate to the address listed above. Persons wishing the FAA to acknowledge receipt of their comments on this notice must submit with those comments a self-addressed, stamped postcard on which the following statement is made: “Comments to Docket No. FAA-2017-0350, Airspace Docket No. 17-AAL-6”. 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. 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 through the internet at 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 the 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 during normal business hours at the Northwest Mountain Regional Office of the Federal Aviation Administration, Air Traffic Organization, Western Service Center, Operations Support Group, Western Service Center, 2200 S 216th St., Des Moines, WA 98198-6547.

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 proposing an amendment to Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR) part 71 by modifying Class E airspace extending upward from 1,200 feet above the surface at Toksook Bay Airport, Toksook, AK; Unalakleet Airport, Unalakleet, AK; Wainwright Airport, Wainwright, AK; and Yakutat Airport, Yakutat, AK. This action would add language to the legal descriptions of these airports that reads “ excluding that airspace extending beyond 12 miles of the shoreline”, and would support IFR operations in standard instrument approach and departure procedures at these airports.

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 designations listed in this document will be published subsequently in the Order.

Regulatory Notices and Analyses

The FAA has determined that this regulation only involves an established body of technical regulations for which frequent and routine amendments are necessary to keep them operationally current, and is non-controversial and unlikely to result in adverse or negative comments. 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 rule, when promulgated, would 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.

List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 71

• Airspace
• Incorporation by reference
• Navigation (air)

The Proposed Amendment

Accordingly, pursuant to the authority delegated to me, 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

1. The authority citation for 14 CFR 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.

2. The incorporation by reference in 14 CFR 71.1 of FAA Order 7400.11B, Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, dated August 3, 2017, and 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.

AAL AK E5 Toksook Bay, AK [Amended]

Toksook Bay Airport, AK

(Lat. 60°32′29″ N, long. 165°05′14″ W)

That airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface within a 6.3-mile radius of Toksook Bay Airport; and that airspace extending upward from 1,200 feet above the surface within a 73-mile radius of the Toksook Bay Airport, excluding that airspace that extends beyond 12 miles of the shoreline.

AAL AK E5 Unalakleet, AK [Amended]

Unalakleet Airport, AK

(Lat. 63°53′19″ N, long. 160°47′57″ W)

That airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface within a 7-mile radius of Unalakleet Airport beginning at the 360° bearing of the airport clockwise to the 260° bearing of the airport, and within a 13.5-mile radius of the airport beginning at the 260° bearing of the airport clockwise to the 360° bearing of the airport, and within 6 miles each side of the Unalakleet Airport 185° bearing of the airport extending from the 7-mile radius to 10 miles south of the airport; and that airspace extending upward from 1,200 feet above the surface within a 74-mile radius of Unalakleet Airport, excluding that airspace that extends beyond 12 miles of the shoreline.

AAL AK E5 Wainwright, AK [Amended]

Wainwright Airport, AK

(Lat. 70°38′17″ N, long. 159°59′41″ W)

That airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface within an 8.5-mile radius of Wainwright Airport; and that airspace extending upward from 1,200 feet above the surface within a 73-mile radius of the Wainwright Airport, AK, excluding that portion extending outside the Anchorage Arctic CTA/FIR (PAZA) boundary, and excluding that airspace that extends beyond 12 miles of the shoreline.

AAL AK E5 Wales, AK [Amended]

Wales Airport, AK

(Lat. 65°37′21″ N, long. 168°05′42″ W)

That airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface within a 6.35-mile radius of Wales Airport; and that airspace extending upward from 1,200 feet above the surface within an area bounded by lat. 65°24′00″ N, long.168°30′00″ W, to lat. 65°53′00″ N, long. 168°30′00″ W, to lat. 66°00′00″ N, long. 167°50′00″ W, to lat. 65°24′00″ N, 167°50′00″ W, to point of beginning, excluding that airspace within the Tin City Class E airspace area, and excluding that airspace that extends beyond 12 miles of the shoreline.

AAL AK E5 Yakutat, AK [Amended]

Yakutat Airport, AK

(Lat. 59°30′12″ N, long. 139°39′37″ W)

Yakutat VOR/DME

(Lat. 59°30′39″ N, long. 139°38′53″ W)

That airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface within the area bounded by lat. 59°47′42″ N, 139°58′48″ W, to lat. 59°37′33″ N, long. 139°40′54″ W, then along the 7 mile radius of the Yakutat VOR/DME clockwise to lat. 59°28′54″ N, long. 139°25′36″ W, to lat. 59°20′16″ N, long. 139°10′20″ W, to lat. 59°02′49″ N, long. 139°47′45″ W, to lat. 59°30′15″ N, long. 140°36′43″ W, to the point of beginning, excluding that area beyond 12 miles from the shoreline within Gulf of Alaska Low Control Area; and that airspace extending upward from 1,200 feet above the surface within a 75-mile radius of the Yakutat VOR/DME, excluding that area extending over Canada, and that airspace that extends beyond 12 miles of the shoreline within Control 1487L.