[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 55 (Thursday, March 23, 2017)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 14841-14842]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-05172]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 71

[Docket No. FAA-2016-9474; Airspace Docket No. 16-AWP-24]


Proposed Amendment of Class E Airspace Areas, and Establishment 
of Class E Airspace; Bishop, CA

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM).

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SUMMARY: This action proposes to modify Class E surface area airspace, 
and modify Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the 
surface at Bishop Airport (formerly Eastern Sierra Regional Airport), 
Bishop, CA. The FAA proposes also to establish Class E surface area 
airspace designated as an extension at this airport. After a review, 
the FAA found these modifications are necessary for the safety and 
management of Instrument Flight Rules aircraft operations at the 
airport.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before May 8, 2017.

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-2016-9474; Airspace Docket No. 16-AWP-24, at the beginning of your 
comments. You may also submit comments through the Internet at http://www.regulations.gov.
    FAA Order 7400.11A, 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 http://www.archives.gov/federal_register/code_of_federal-regulations/ibr_locations.html.
    FAA Order 7400.11, Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, is 
published yearly and effective on September 15.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tom Clark, Federal Aviation 
Administration, Operations Support Group, Western Service Center, 1601 
Lind Avenue SW., Renton, WA 98057; telephone (425) 203-4511.

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 at Bishop Airport, Bishop, CA.

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-2016-9474/
Airspace Docket No. 16-ANM-24''. 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, 1601 Lind Avenue SW., Renton, WA 
98057.

Availability and Summary of Documents Proposed for Incorporation by 
Reference

    This document proposes to amend FAA Order 7400.11A, Airspace 
Designations and Reporting Points, dated August 3, 2016, and effective 
September 15, 2016. FAA Order 7400.11A is publicly available as listed 
in the ADDRESSES section of this document. FAA Order 7400.11A 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 surface area 
airspace, modifying Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet 
above the surface, and establishing Class E surface area airspace 
designated as an extension, at Bishop Airport (formerly Eastern Sierra 
Regional Airport), Bishop, CA.
    Class E surface area airspace would be modified to within a 5-mile 
radius (from a 4.2-mile radius) of Bishop Airport, with 2 segments 
extending from the 5-mile radius to 6.9 miles northwest of the airport, 
and 9.6 miles north-northwest of the airport, respectively.
    Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface 
would

[[Page 14842]]

be modified to within a 6.7-mile radius of Bishop Airport, with a 7.2-
mile wide segment extending to 11.5 miles northeast of the airport. 
Also, the Class E airspace extending upward from 1,200 feet above the 
surface would be reduced to a small area southeast of the airport as 
the current configuration largely duplicates the Coaldale, NV, Class E 
en route airspace area. Additionally, Class E airspace extending upward 
from 12,500 feet MSL would be removed, as this airspace supports no 
current IFR operations.
    These airspace modifications are necessary for the safety and 
management of IFR operations in standard instrument approach and 
departure procedures at the airport. The airport name would be changed 
to be in concert with the FAA's aeronautical database.
    Class E airspace designations are published in paragraph 6002, 
6004, and 6005, respectively, of FAA Order 7400.11A, dated August 3, 
2016, and effective September 15, 2016, 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, 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 will 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

0
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.


Sec.  71.1   [Amended]

0
2. The incorporation by reference in 14 CFR 71.1 of FAA Order 7400.11A, 
Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, dated August 3, 2016, and 
effective September 15, 2016, is amended as follows:

Paragraph 6002 Class E Airspace Areas Designated as a Surface Area.

* * * * *

AWP CA E2 Bishop, CA [Modified]

Bishop Airport, CA
    (Lat. 37[deg]22'23'' N., long. 118[deg]21'49'' W.)

    Within a 5-mile radius of Bishop Airport.

Paragraph 6004 Class E Airspace Areas Designated as an Extension to 
a Class D or Class E Surface Area.

* * * * *

AWP CA E4 Bishop, CA [New]

Bishop Airport, CA
    (Lat. 37[deg]22'23'' N., long. 118[deg]21'49'' W.)

    That airspace extending upward from the surface within 1.2 miles 
each side of a 315[deg] bearing from Bishop Airport extending from 
the 5-mile radius of the airport to 6.9 miles northwest of the 
airport, and within 1.2 miles each side of a 337[deg] bearing from 
the airport extending from the 5 mile radius of the airport to 9.6 
miles northwest of the airport.

Paragraph 6005 Class E Airspace Areas Extending Upward From 700 
Feet or More Above the Surface of the Earth.

* * * * *

AWP CA E5 Bishop, CA [Modified]

Bishop Airport, CA
    (Lat. 37[deg]22'23'' N., long. 118[deg]21'49'' W.)

    That airspace upward from 700 feet above the surface within a 
6.7-mile radius of Bishop Airport, and within 4 miles west and 3.2 
miles east of a 337[deg] bearing from the airport extending from the 
6.7-mile radius of the airport to 15.2 miles northwest of the 
airport. That airspace upward from 1,200 feet above the surface 
within 3 miles southwest and 11.5 miles northeast of a 157[deg] 
bearing from the Bishop Airport extending from the airport to 10.4 
miles southeast of the airport.

    Issued in Seattle, Washington, on March 3, 2017.
Richard Roberts,
Manager, Operations Support Group, Western Service Center.
[FR Doc. 2017-05172 Filed 3-22-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4910-13-P