[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 120 (Thursday, June 21, 2001)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 33215-33216]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-15607]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 91

[Docket No. 26112; Notice No. 90-2]
RIN 2120-AD26


Sole Radio Navigation System; Minimum Standards for Certification

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM); withdrawal.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA or ``we'') is 
withdrawing a previously published ANPRM that sought information on the 
minimum standards for certification of a sole radio navigation system 
in aircraft conducting flight under instrument flight rules (IFR) en 
route, and in terminal area operations including nonprecision approach, 
in controlled airspace in the United States. The proposal was in 
response to a requirement of the Airport and Airway Safety and Capacity 
Expansion Act of 1987. We are withdrawing the document because the 
navigation issues set forth in the ANPRM have been superseded by new 
technology, and Flight Standards Service of the FAA is drafting a 
notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) which will encompass those issues 
that remain relevant and update the terminology of our general 
operating and flight rules.

EFFECTIVE DATE: The advance notice of proposed rulemaking published at 
55 FR 2206 is withdrawn on June 21, 2001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bonnie Fritts, ARM-28, Office of 
Rulemaking, Federal Aviation Administration, 800 Independence Avenue, 
SW., Washington, DC 20591; telephone (202) 267-7037.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:  

Background

    On January 22, 1990, the FAA published ANPRM No. 90-2 (55 FR 2206) 
proposing amendments to 14 CFR part 91, in response to Section 310(c) 
of the Airport and Airway Safety and Capacity Expansion Act of 1987 
(Public Law 100-223), which required that--
    Not later than September 30, 1989, the Administrator shall 
establish by regulation minimum standards under which a radio 
navigation system may be certified as the sole radio navigation system 
required in an aircraft for operation in airspace in the United States.
    The ANPRM invited public comment to aid the FAA in implementing the 
provisions of the law. The comment period closed on May 22, 1990.

Discussion of Comments

    Aviation industry groups, manufacturers of navigation systems, and 
interested individuals responded to the notice with a total of 19 
comments. Commenters agreed on the need for minimum standards for 
certification of navigation systems. While commenters were generally 
supportive of our proposed rulemaking, many requested additional 
enhancements to the proposal.
    Air Transport Association (ATA) and Aerospace Industries 
Association (AIA), as well as individuals associated with the aviation 
industry, expressed concerns that satellite-based navigation systems, 
and other viable non-radio systems, be addressed by the standards. The 
aviation community's reliance on ground-based navigation systems was 
being encroached upon by new technologies, such as the Global 
Positioning Satellite (GPS) navigation system, providing more efficient 
use of airspace and an increase in flight safety. Geostar Corporation 
and Litton Aero Products, manufacturers of navigation systems, also 
shared this concern that FAA recognize new technologies and not 
artifically limit technology growth with overly rigid standards. Years 
have passed since these comments were made and growth in navigation 
systems technology has continued to even further surpass radio 
navigation systems.
    Several individual commenters expressed their desire that any 
system resulting from the minimum certification standards be affordable 
for individual pilots who are without the financial support of large 
organizations.
    National Business Aircraft Association and ATA requested that FAA 
task the Radio Technical Commission for Aeronautics with developing the 
necessary documentation for the minimum standards.
    Air Line Pilots Association expressed general support for the 
rulemaking proposal.
    Commenters from all categories stated that definitions of terms in 
the ANPRM were not clear, some suggesting alternative definitions or 
the addition of terms like ``testability,'' ``sole means navigation 
system,'' and ``precision approach.'' Aircraft Owners & Pilots 
Association (AOPA), Air Traffic Control Association, and AIA took 
issue, in particular, with the phrase ``near 100%'' in relation to 
reliability and availability measurement, requesting a more specific 
measurement to avoid confusion.
    AIA and AOPA stated that results of FAA studies should be shared 
with readers and requested that those results be included in the final 
rule.
    One individual commented that a particular proposed passage, 
Sec. 91.205(g)(2)(i), was not necessary because operations ``are 
already far too burdened by unjustified requirements.''
    The Illinois Department of Transportation asserted the GPS and 
Loran-C systems should be allowed to be used in ``fly-direct'' 
configuration, rather than ``along the route to be flown,'' as the 
wording of Sec. 91.33 (new Sec. 91.205 (g)(2)(ii) states. While this 
comment and the preceding comment had relevance when originally 
submitted, they now serve as another illustration of justification for 
withdrawal--the regulatory action that has been superseded by events.
    The ANPRM which we are withdrawing identifies the pertinent section 
of the Code of Federal Regulations most commonly as Sec. 91.33 (new 
Sec. 91.205). From today's perspective, Sec. 91.33 has not existed in

[[Page 33216]]

the Code of Federal Regulations in other than a reserved capacity for 
over ten years. Even in these two specific comment references, the 
``new Sec. 91.205(g)(2)'' has long since disappeared from the Code of 
Federal Regulations. Issues have likewise disappeared, or evolved to 
find relevance in today's new technologies. The passage of time, along 
with its accompanying growth in technology, has transformed once valid 
concerns into obsolete issues. The remaining issues addressed in the 
ANPRM that have retained their relevance will be encompassed within an 
NPRM currently being drafted by FAA.
    In that NPRM, the FAA will propose to update not only 14 CFR part 
91, but also parts 1, 95, 97, 121, 129, and 135, to allow for the use 
of the additional capabilities and developing technologies of 
navigation systems that are other than ground-based. The use of ground-
based navigation systems often results in less than optimal routes or 
instrument procedures and an inefficient use of airspace. The proposal, 
under development in a separate action, would allow for the use of Area 
Navigation (RNAV) systems to provide greater flexibility in defining 
routes, instrument procedures, and airspace design, along with an 
associated increase in flight safety.

Reason for Withdrawal

    A considerable amount of time has elapsed since the ANPRM was 
published. Issues set forth in the ANPRM have been supersede by new 
technology and the development of operating concepts that are being 
addressed in joint FAA/industry working groups. The Flight Standards 
Service of FAA is drafting in NPRM that will update the terminology in 
14 CFR part 91 to address, among other things, the issue of satellite-
based navigation systems.

Conclusion

    The FAA has determined that this regulatory course of action is no 
longer necessary. Accordingly, Notice No. 90-2, published at 55 FR 2206 
on January 22, 1990, is withdrawn.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on May 24, 2001.
Nicholas Sabatini,
Director, Flight Standards Service.
[FR Doc. 01-15607 Filed 6-20-01; 8:45 am]
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