[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 118 (Wednesday, June 20, 2007)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 33925-33926]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 07-3050]



[[Page 33925]]

=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Parts 23, 25, 33, and 35

[Docket No. FAA-2007-27310; Notice No. 07-04]
RIN 2120-AI95


Airworthiness Standards; Propellers; Reopening of Comment Period

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM); reopening of comment 
period.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: On April 11, 2007, the FAA published a Notice of Proposed 
Rulemaking (NPRM) regarding the revision of airworthiness standards for 
the issuance of original and amended type certificates for airplane 
propellers. The comment period closed on June 11, 2007. However, the 
FAA is reopening the comment period for an additional 45 days in 
response to requests from McCauley Propeller Systems, Hartzell 
Propeller, Inc., and the General Aviation Manufacturers Association. 
The reopening of the comment period is needed to permit these 
companies, and other affected parties, additional time to develop 
comments responsive to the NPRM.

DATES: The comment period for the NPRM published on April 11, 2007 (72 
FR 18136) closed June 11, 2007, and is reopened until August 6, 2007.

ADDRESSES: You may send comments identified by Docket Number FAA-2007-
27310 using any of the following methods:
     DOT Docket Web site: Go to http://dms.dot.gov and follow 
the instructions for sending your comments electronically.
     Government-wide rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and follow the instructions for sending your 
comments electronically.
     Mail: Send comments to the Docket Management Facility; 
U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., West 
Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590.
     Fax: Fax comments to the Docket Management Facility at 
202-493-2251.
     Hand Delivery: Bring comments to the Docket Management 
Facility in Room W12-140 of the West Building Ground Floor at 1200 New 
Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday 
through Friday, except Federal holidays.
    For more information on the rulemaking process, see the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.
    Privacy: We will post all comments we receive, without change, to 
http://dms.dot.gov, including any personal information you provide. 
Using the search function of our docket Web site, anyone can find and 
read the comments received into any of our dockets, including the name 
of the individual sending the comment (or signing the comment for an 
association, business, labor union, etc.). You may review DOT's 
complete Privacy Act Statement in the Federal Register published on 
April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477-78).
    Docket: To read background documents or comments received, go to 
http://dms.dot.gov at any time or to the Docket Management Facility in 
Room W12-140 of the West Building Ground Floor at 1200 New Jersey 
Avenue, SE., Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, except Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jay Turnberg, Engine and Propeller 
Directorate Standards Staff, ANE-110, Federal Aviation Administration, 
12 New England Executive Park, Burlington, Massachusetts 01803-5299; 
telephone (781) 238-7116; facsimile (781) 238-7199, e-mail: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Comments Invited

    The FAA invites interested persons to participate in this 
rulemaking by submitting written comments, data, or views. We also 
invite comments relating to the economic, environmental, energy, or 
federalism impacts that might result from adopting the proposals in 
this document. The most helpful comments reference a specific portion 
of the proposal, explain the reason for any recommended change, and 
include supporting data. To ensure the docket does not contain 
duplicate comments, please send only one copy of written comments, or 
if you are filing comments electronically, please submit your comments 
only one time.
    We will file in the docket all comments we receive, as well as a 
report summarizing each substantive public contact with FAA personnel 
concerning this proposed rulemaking. Before acting on this proposal, we 
will consider all comments we receive on or before the closing date for 
comments. We will consider comments filed after the comment period has 
closed if it is possible to do so without incurring expense or delay. 
We may change this proposal in light of the comments we receive.

Proprietary or Confidential Business Information

    Do not file in the docket information that you consider to be 
proprietary or confidential business information. Send or deliver this 
information directly to the person identified in the FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT section of this document. You must mark the 
information that you consider proprietary or confidential. If you send 
the information on a disk or CD-ROM, mark the outside of the disk or 
CD-ROM and also identify electronically within the disk or CD-ROM the 
specific information that is proprietary or confidential.
    Under 14 CFR 11.35(b), when we are aware of proprietary information 
filed with a comment, we do not place it in the docket. We hold it in a 
separate file to which the public does not have access, and place a 
note in the docket that we have received it. If we receive a request to 
examine or copy this information, we treat it as any other request 
under the Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552). We process such a 
request under the DOT procedures found in 49 CFR part 7.

Availability of Rulemaking Documents

    You can get an electronic copy using the Internet by:
    (1) Searching the Department of Transportation's electronic Docket 
Management System (DMS) web page (http://dms.dot.gov/search);
    (2) Visiting the Office of Rulemaking's web page at http://www.faa.gov/avr/arm/index.cfm; or
    (3) Accessing the Government Printing Office's web page at http://www.gpoaccess.gov/fr/index.html.
    You can also get a copy by sending a request to the Federal 
Aviation Administration, Office of Rulemaking, ARM-1, 800 Independence 
Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20591, or by calling (202) 267-9680. Make 
sure to identify the docket number, notice number, or amendment number 
of this rulemaking.

Background

    On April 11, 2007, the FAA published in the Federal Register (72 FR 
18136) Notice No. 07-05, Airworthiness Standards; Propellers. This 
proposed rule would revise the airworthiness standards for the issuance 
of original and amended type certificates for airplane propellers. The 
proposed standards would address the current advances in technology and 
harmonize FAA and European Aviation Safety Agency propeller 
certification requirements, thereby simplifying

[[Page 33926]]

airworthiness approvals for imports and exports. The comment period 
closed on June 11, 2007.
    By requests dated May 3, May 31, and June 6, Hartzell Propeller, 
Inc. (Hartzell), McCauley Propeller Systems (McCauley), and the General 
Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA), respectively, asked that the 
comment period be extended by 60 days to permit a more careful review 
and consideration of the proposed rule.
    The FAA has determined that reopening the comment period for 45 
days will allow Hartzell, McCauley, GAMA, and others sufficient time 
for a more thorough review of applicable issues and questions raised by 
the NPRM, and for the drafting of responsive comments.
    In order, therefore, to give all interested persons additional time 
to complete their comments, the FAA finds that it is in the public 
interest to reopen the comment period for forty-five (45) days.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on June 14, 2007.
Dorenda D. Baker,
Deputy Director, Aircraft Certification Service.
[FR Doc. 07-3050 Filed 6-15-07; 4:02 pm]
BILLING CODE 4910-13-P