[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 17 (Thursday, January 27, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 3972-3973]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-1471]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration


Notice of Opportunity To Self-Correct Annual Authorizations for 
Commercial Air Tour Operators Over National Parks and Tribal Lands 
Within or Abutting National Parks

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

ACTION: Notice

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SUMMARY: On October 25, 2002, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) 
published the final rule for Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations (14 
CFR) part 136, National Parks Air Tour Management (67 FR 65662). The 
rule became effective on January 23, 2003. In accordance with the 
provisions of the National Parks Air Tour Management Act of 2000, the 
final rule stated that the commercial air tour operators granted 
interim operating authority (IOA) would be published in the Federal 
Register for notice and the opportunity for comment. Based on 
information received from multiple sources and our own review, the FAA 
believes there may be some errors in the number of commercial air tours 
initially reported to the FAA. Thus, the FAA believes it is in the 
public interest to provide an opportunity for air tour operators to 
review and self-correct their annual authorizations prior to issuing 
the statutorily required notice. This notice announces the self-
correcting opportunity and procedure. Responses should be provided to 
the contact person below by February 21, 2005.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gene Kirkendall, Air Transportation 
Division (AFS-200W), Flight Standards Service, Federal Aviation 
Administration, 800 Independence Ave., SW., Washington, DC 20591; 
telephone (202) 267-8166; e-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On October 25, 2002, the FAA published a 
final rule in Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR) part 136, 
National Parks Air Tour Management (67 FR 65662) to fulfill the mandate 
of The National Parks Air Tour Management Act of 2000 (the Act), 
enacted on April 5, 2000. This final rule (part 136) completed the 
definition of ``commercial air tour operation'' by establishing the 
altitude (5,000 feet above ground level) below which an operator flying 
over a national park for the purpose of sightseeing would be classified 
as a commercial air tour operator. The rule also codified provisions of 
the Act. In accordance with 14 CFR 136.7(b), before commencing 
commercial air tour operations over a unit of the national park system, 
or tribal lands within or abutting a national park, a commercial air 
tour operator is required to apply to the Administrator for authority 
to conduct the operations over the park or tribal lands. Title 14 CFR 
136.11(a) states that upon application, the Administrator shall grant 
interim operating authority (IOA) to a commercial air tour operator for 
commercial air tour operations over a national park or tribal land for 
which the operator is an existing commercial air tour operator. 
Consistent with the Act, 14 CFR 136.11(b)(3) also states that IOAs 
granted under that section would be published in the Federal Register 
to provide notice and opportunity for comment.
    Based on information received from multiple sources and our own 
review, the FAA believes there may be some errors in the number of 
commercial air tours initially reported. Consequently, prior to issuing 
this required notice, the FAA wants to provide an opportunity for air 
tour operators to review and correct, if necessary, the FAA's current 
IOA database. There are several reasons why errors could have 
unintentionally occurred, such as: (1) Operators were not required to 
keep records of the number of commercial air tours conducted over 
national parks prior to the adoption of the Act; (2) there was a 2\1/
2\-year time lapse between the passage of the Act and the effective 
date of the rule; and (3) there appears to have been confusion over how 
to report information, especially for operators flying over more than 
one park. With regard to the third reason, a number of operators 
reported operations for more than one park by stating the number of 
total flights and then listing the parks separately. This alone may 
have led to over-reporting the number of commercial air tours over 
national parks.
    Thus, the FAA has issued individual letters to each operator in the 
FAA's Air Tour database notifying them that they should confirm and 
correct if necessary, their allocation numbers for each park by 
February 21, 2005. If the operator notices that the number of 
allocations granted over a park as shown in their operations 
specifications is incorrect, they should notify the FAA by letter or e-
mail of the correct amount. Self-correcting letters may be sent to Gene 
Kirkendall, Air Transportation Division, AFS-200W, Flight Standards 
Service, Federal Aviation Administration, 800 Independence Avenue, SW., 
Washington, DC 20591, or e-mailed to Gene [email protected]. There is 
no penalty for self-correcting. Any operator not receiving an 
individual letter from the FAA is hereby noticed through publication 
that they should confirm their commercial air tour interim operating 
authority allocations. Operators also should notify the contact person 
in this notice if they did not receive an individual letter. Operators 
not submitting a change will be deemed to have confirmed the number 
originally reported to the FAA and issued as IOAs.

[[Page 3973]]

    When confirming status and the number of flights issued for each 
operator, please keep in mind the following principles:
    (1) Only operators that conducted operations at any time during the 
12-month period prior to April 5, 2000 (the date of enactment of the 
Act), qualify as existing operators. Only operators reporting to us as 
existing operators should have received IOA. In situations where an 
operator has a question about its existing operator status, it should 
contact its local Flight Standards District Office (FSDO) and receive 
confirmation from the FSDO as to its status. The FAA has received 
several questions regarding corporations that qualified as existing air 
tour operators and then experienced a change in business management 
during the time lapse. Whether these operators qualify as existing 
operators will be decided on a case-by-case basis by the FAA.
    (2) The number to be published in the Federal Register must reflect 
only the number of commercial air tour flights conducted by an operator 
over a particular park within either (1) the 12-month period prior to 
April 5, 2000; or (2) the average number of flights per 12-month period 
for the 3-year period prior to April 5, 2000, and for seasonal 
operations, the number of flights so used during the season or seasons 
covered by that 12-month period. The number should not include desired 
increases above the allowed historical number of new entrant requests. 
Operators should not have received increases or new entrant authority 
through this IOA grant. Such requests will be handled through a 
separate process by FAA and the National Park Service.
    (3) Operators should receive an IOA that reflects the actual number 
of commercial air tours that were conducted during the relevant time 
period set forth in the statute and the rule. Operators needing to 
self-correct should identify each park and the number of flights for 
each park, including whether the flight was part of a circuit, and if 
so, what parks were included in that circuit. For instance, operators 
flying over more than one park between takeoff and landing should 
identify those flights as circuit tours. Thus, if the operator flew 
over three parks during the same flight (takoff to landing) in 100 
flights, then the operator should specify this to the best of its 
ability. If the operator flew 100 flights with each flight going over 
one park of three different authorized parks, then the operator should 
so specify.
    Operators are hereby notified that after February 21, 2005, the FAA 
will prepare a final listing of all existing commercial air tour 
operators receiving IOAs and the number of flights per park and publish 
the revised list in the Federal Register for comment, as required by 
statute. If comments are received in response to that publication that 
provide substantive information that an operator does not qualify under 
the law as an existing operator or has erroneously reported the number 
of flights flown over a park, the FAA may investigate and take 
corrective action, if necessary, to bring the operator into compliance 
with the law.
    As operator reexamine their records for confirmation in response to 
this letter, they are encouraged to keep supporting information in 
their files in case questions subsequently arise that merit 
investigation. Operators may voluntarily provide such supporting 
information at this time to FAA but are not required to do so.
    The IOA information provided to the FAA will be used solely to 
determine and confirm the appropriate allocation for IOAs and will not 
be used to determine noise impacts to national park resources.

    Dated: Issued in Washington, DC on January 19, 2005.
John M. Allen,
Acting Director, Flight Standards Service.
[FR Doc. 05-1471 Filed 1-26-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-13-M