[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 17 (Tuesday, January 27, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 3990-3991]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-1639]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Office of the Secretary

[Docket No. OST 96-1960]


Amendments to Air Carrier Family Assistance Plans Pursuant to 
Vision 100--Century of Aviation Reauthorization Act

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, (OST) DOT.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Department is publishing the following notices regarding 
the obligation of air carriers to amend their Family Assistance Plans 
in accordance with section 809 of Vision 100--Century of Aviation 
Reauthorization Act (Pub. L. 108-176; 117 Stat. 2490, December 12, 
2003).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dayton Lehman, Jr., Deputy Assistant 
General Counsel, Office of Aviation Enforcement and Proceedings (C-70), 
400 7th Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590, (202) 366-9349.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Requirement That Air Carriers Amend Plans To Address the Needs of 
Families of Passengers Involved in Aircraft Accidents

    This is to advise certificated air carriers that the Vision 100--
Century of Aviation Reauthorization Act (Pub. L. 108-176, 117 Stat. 
2490, December 12, 2003) amends 49 U.S.C. 41113(b) to require, among 
other things, that certificated air carriers submit to the Department 
of Transportation (Department) and the National Transportation Safety 
Board (NTSB) additional assurances for their respective plans to 
address the needs of families of passengers involved in aircraft 
accidents. The content and filing requirements for the update to the 
plans applicable to certificated air carriers are set forth in section 
809 of Vision 100. A copy of section 809 and an electronic version of 
this document are available on the World Wide Web at http://dms.dot.gov.
    The additional assurances required to be submitted are described in 
paragraph (a)(2) of section 809 of Vision 100. In accordance with 
paragraph (c), certificated air carriers must submit their updated 
plans to the Department and the NTSB within 90 days of the statute's 
enactment. Since Vision 100 was signed into law on December 12, 2003, 
updated plans are due to be filed not later than March 11, 2004. Plans 
should be submitted to the Department and the NTSB at the following 
addresses:

Dockets--Dockets OST 96-1960, U.S. Department of Transportation, 400 
Seventh Street, SW., Room PL 401, Washington, DC 20590.
Erik Grosof, Office of Transportation Disaster Assistance, National 
Transportation Safety Board, 490 L'Enfant Plaza, SW., Washington, DC 
20594.

    Each certificated air carrier should submit its plan in its 
entirety, that is, the plan as it exists with the new assurances as set 
forth in Vision 100. We expect each certificated air carrier to give a 
high priority to the timely preparation and submission of its updated 
plan. We note that the requirements of section 41113 apply to all 
certificated air carriers, including those holding cargo-only authority 
and those operating small aircraft. We also emphasize that, if a 
carrier chooses to contract with an outside source to act as a point of 
contact and to provide services covered in the assurances, full 
responsibility for complying with the provisions of the law 
nevertheless remains with the carrier.
    We would also like to take this opportunity to request, on behalf 
of the NTSB, that each air carrier provide the NTSB an updated 24-hour 
telephone number for its operations center for use in the event of an 
emergency, and that the number be updated with the NTSB in the future 
as necessary.
    Questions concerning contents of the plans may be addressed to Erik 
Grosof, Office of Transportation Disaster Assistance, NTSB, at (202) 
314-6189. Questions concerning the applicability of the requirements of 
section 41113 to a particular air carrier should be addressed to Dayton 
Lehman, Jr., Deputy Assistant General Counsel for Aviation Enforcement 
and Proceedings, DOT, at (202) 366-9342.


[[Page 3991]]


    Dated: January 20, 2004.
Samuel Podberesky,
Assistant General Counsel for Aviation Enforcement and Proceedings.
[FR Doc. 04-1639 Filed 1-23-04; 10:31 am]
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