[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 68 (Monday, April 9, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15191-15194]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-07228]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

[Docket No: FAA-2005-22842]


Notice of Opportunity: Criteria and Application Procedures for 
the Military Airport Program (MAP).

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Department of 
Transportation (DOT).

ACTION: Notice of criteria and application procedures.

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SUMMARY: This document announces the criteria, application procedures, 
and schedule to be applied by the Secretary of Transportation to 
designate a maximum of 15 joint-use or former military airports to 
participate in the MAP for the purposes of capital development funding 
assistance.

DATES: Applications must be received no later than June 8, 2018.

ADDRESSES: Submit an original signed Standard Form (SF) 424, 
``Application for Federal Assistance'' (available at: https://www.faa.gov/airports/resources/forms/?sect=aip,payments) along with all 
supporting documentation. Airport sponsor applicants must specifically 
request consideration to participate in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2018 MAP. 
Submission(s) should be sent to the appropriate FAA Regional Airports 
Division or Airports District Office that serves the airport (sponsor). 
Applicants can find their local office on the FAA website at: http://www.faa.gov/airports/news_information/contact_info/regional/ or may 
contact the office listed under the section ``For Further 
Information.''

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Jonathan DiMartino 
([email protected]), Airports Financial Assistance Division, 
Office of Airport Planning and Programming, Federal Aviation 
Administration, 800 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20591, 
(202) 267-8744.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

General Description of the Program

    Under 49 U.S.C. 47118, the MAP provides capital development 
assistance to civilian airport sponsors of designated joint-use 
military airfields or former military airports that are included in the 
FAA's National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems (NPIAS). Airport 
sponsors designated to the MAP may receive set-aside grant funds from 
the Airport Improvement Program (AIP) (4 percent of discretionary 
funds) for airport development that will assist the airport sponsor in 
successfully transitioning the airport from military to civilian use. 
The MAP is described in detail in FAA Order 5100.38D, Airport 
Improvement Program (AIP) Handbook.

Number of Airports

    As set forth by 49 U.S.C. 47118, a maximum of 15 airports may 
participate in the MAP at any time. Three of the 15 may be general 
aviation (GA) airports; the remainder must be commercial service or 
reliever airports. In FY 2018, there are 12 slots available in the 
program; however, there are no openings available for GA airports.

[[Page 15192]]

Designation Duration

    The FAA has the option to designate an airport sponsor for any 
duration between 1 and 5 fiscal years. The FAA will evaluate the 
conversion needs of the airport in its capital development plan to 
determine the appropriate length of designation.

Redesignation Duration

    Previously designated airport sponsors may apply for redesignation 
to the MAP for a period between 1 and 5 fiscal years. Those airport 
sponsors must meet the current MAP eligibility requirements of 49 
U.S.C. 47118(a), at the beginning of each grant period. The FAA will 
evaluate applications for redesignation primarily in terms of the 
remaining projects that are specifically fundable only under the MAP 
because redesignated airports generally have fewer conversion needs 
than new candidates. The FAA's goal is to gradually transition MAP 
airports to regular AIP participation by helping these airports 
successfully convert to civilian airport operations.

MAP Funding Limitations

    Designated airport sponsors may receive up to $7 million per fiscal 
year for terminal projects and up to $7 million for construction, 
improvement, or repair of fuel farms, utility systems, surface 
automobile parking lots, hangars, and air cargo terminals that are not 
larger than 50,000 square feet. Revenue generating projects that may 
not normally be AIP eligible at the airport may be considered through 
the MAP to assist in the conversion of a military joint-use or former 
military facility to civilian use.

Use of Regular AIP on a MAP Designated Airport

    MAP designated airport projects are not limited to MAP funding. 
They may also qualify for other AIP funding if they meet all AIP 
associated project eligibility and justification requirements.

Designation Requirements

    The MAP allows the Secretary of Transportation to designate 
civilian airport sponsors of joint-use or former military airports 
(other than an airport so designated before August 24, 1994) to receive 
grants from the AIP if they meet the following general requirements:
    1. The airport is a former military installation closed or 
realigned under:
    a. Section 2687 of 10 U.S.C. (announcement of closures of large 
Department of Defense (DOD) installations after September 30, 1977);
    b. Section 201 of the Defense Authorization Amendments and Base 
Closure and Realignment Act (BRAC) (10 U.S.C. 2687, note); or
    c. Section 2905 of the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Act of 
1990 (10 U.S.C. 2687, note).
    2. The airport is a military installation with both military and 
civil aircraft operations.
    3. The airport is classified as a commercial service or reliever 
airport in the NPIAS. (See 49 U.S.C. 47105(b)(2).)
    4. In addition, three of the designated airports may be GA airports 
that were former military installations closed or realigned under BRAC, 
as amended, or 10 U.S.C. 2687. (See 49 U.S.C. 47118(g).) Therefore, a 
GA airport can only qualify under requirement 1 of this section. ``GA 
airport'' means a public airport that is located in a State that, as 
determined by the Secretary:
    a. does not have scheduled service; or
    b. has scheduled passenger service with fewer than 2,500 passenger 
boardings per year.
    Pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 47104(c), in designating new candidate 
airport sponsors, the Secretary may consider only current or former 
military airports for designation if a grant would:
    1. Reduce delays at an airport with more than 20,000 hours of 
annual delays in commercial passenger aircraft takeoffs and landings;
    2. Enhance airport and air traffic control system capacity in a 
metropolitan area or reduce current and projected flight delays; or
    3. Preserve or enhance minimum airfield infrastructure facilities 
at former military airports to support emergency diversionary 
operations for transoceanic flights. (See 49 U.S.C. 47118(c)(3).)
    The FAA will evaluate applications for new MAP designations on the 
basis of how the proposed projects included in the application would 
contribute to delay reductions and/or how the airport improvements 
would enhance national and local air traffic or airport system capacity 
and provide adequate related user services.

Candidate Evaluation

    Recently realigned or closed military airports and military 
airfields with new joint-use agreements generally have the greatest 
need for funding assistance to transition to civil airport operations. 
Newly converted airports and new joint-use locations frequently have 
minimal capital development resources and therefore receive priority 
consideration for designation and MAP funding. The FAA will evaluate 
the need for eligible projects based upon information in the airport's 
5-year Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) submitted by the airport sponsor 
and the following specific factors:
    1. Compatibility of airport roles and the ability of the airport to 
provide an adequate airport facility;
    2. The capability of the airport to serve aircraft that otherwise 
must use a congested airport;
    3. Landside surface access;
    4. Airport operational capability, including peak hour and annual 
capacities;
    5. Potential of other metropolitan area airports to relieve the 
congested airport;
    6. Ability to satisfy, relieve, or meet air cargo demand within the 
metropolitan area;
    7. Forecasted aircraft and passenger levels, type of commercial 
service anticipated, i.e., scheduled or chartered commercial service;
    8. Type and capacity of aircraft projected to serve the airport and 
level of operations at the congested airport and the candidate airport;
    9. The potential for the airport to be served by aircraft or users, 
including the airlines serving the congested airport;
    10. Ability to replace an existing commercial service or reliever 
airport serving the area; and
    11. Any other documentation to support designation of the airport 
sponsor's candidate airport.
    The FAA will evaluate proposed development projects to assess the 
potential of the airport to become a viable civilian airport that will 
enhance system capacity or reduce delays.

Application Procedures and Required Documentation

    Airport sponsors applying for designation or redesignation to the 
MAP must complete and submit an SF-424 and provide supporting 
documentation to the appropriate FAA Regional Airports Division or 
Airports District Office serving that airport. Airport sponsors may 
obtain this fillable form from https://www.faa.gov/airports/resources/forms/?sect=aip,-payments. Applicants must fill this form out 
completely and include the following:
     Item 1 (Type of Submission)--Mark as a ``preapplication'';
     Item 2 (Type of Application)--Mark as ``New'' and in 
``Other'' fill in ``Military Airport Program'';
     Item 15 (Descriptive Title of Applicant's Project)--Fill 
with ``designation (or redesignation) to the Military Airport 
Program''; and
     Item 18.a. (Estimated Funding)--Fill in the total amount 
of funding requests anticipated from the MAP over the entire term 
sought in the application.

[[Page 15193]]

Supporting Documentation

    1. Identification as a joint-use or former military airport. The 
application must identify the airport sponsor's airport as either a 
joint-use or former military airport and indicate whether it was:
    a. Closed or realigned under section 201 of the BRAC and/or section 
2905 of the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Act of 1990 
(Installations Approved for Closure by the Defense Base Realignment and 
Closure Commissions);
    b. Closed or realigned pursuant to 10 U.S.C. 2687 as excess 
property (bases announced for closure by the DOD pursuant to this title 
after September 30, 1977 (this is the date of announcement for 
closure)); or
    c. A military installation with both military and civil aircraft 
operations.
    2. Qualifications for the MAP. The application must include 
documentation to answer questions a. through j. below:
    a. Does the airport meet the definition of a ``public airport'' as 
defined in 49 U.S.C. 47102(21)?
    b. Is the required environmental review for civil reuse or joint-
use of the military airfield completed?
     The environmental review does not need to include the 
individual projects to be funded by the MAP.
     The environmental review is necessary to convey the 
property or enter into a long-term lease, or finalize a joint-use 
agreement.
     The military department conveying or leasing the property 
or entering into a joint-use agreement should have the primary 
responsibility for the environmental review.
    c. Does the eligible airport sponsor hold or will hold satisfactory 
title or a long-term lease (25 years or longer)?
     Documentation that the Federal Government accepted an 
application for surplus or BRAC airport property is sufficient to meet 
this requirement.
    d. Does the airport sponsor have an existing joint-use agreement 
with the military department having jurisdiction over the airport?
    e. A copy of the existing joint-use agreement must be submitted 
with the application. Is the airport classified as a ``commercial 
service airport'' or a ``reliever airport'' as defined in 49 U.S.C. 
47102(7) and (23)?
    f. Is the airport sponsor an eligible airport ``sponsor,'' as 
defined in 49 U.S.C. 47102(26)?
    g. Does the airport sponsor have a 5-year CIP indicating all 
eligible grant projects to be funded either from the MAP or from other 
portions of the AIP?
    h. Does the airport have an FAA-approved airport layout plan (ALP)?
    i. For commercial service airports, has a business/marketing plan 
or equivalent been completed?
    j. For reliever or GA airports, alternative planning documents may 
be submitted in lieu of a business/marketing plan.
    3. Other Factors. The application should include information on the 
items below:
    a. Identify the existing and potential levels of visual or extra 
instrument operations and aeronautical activity at the current or 
former military airport and, if applicable, the congested airport.
    b. Explain how the airport contributes to the air traffic system or 
airport system capacity.
    c. Provide the revenue passenger and air cargo levels if commercial 
air carriers serve the airport.
    d. Describe the airport's projected civil role and development 
needs for transitioning from use as a military airfield to a civil 
airport. Include how development projects would serve to reduce delays 
at an airport with more than 20,000 hours of annual delays in 
commercial passenger aircraft takeoffs and landings, enhance capacity 
in a metropolitan area, or reduce current and projected flight delays.
    e. Describe the existing airspace capacity. Explain how anticipated 
new operations would affect the surrounding airspace, congestion, and 
air traffic flow patterns in the metropolitan area in or near the 
airport.
    f. Describe the airport sponsor's 5-year CIP. The CIP must identify 
the safety, capacity, and conversion related projects, estimated costs, 
and projected construction schedule.
    g. Describe projects that are consistent with the role of the 
airport and effectively contribute to the joint-use or civil conversion 
of the airfield. The projects selected (e.g., safety-related, 
conversion-related, and/or capacity-related) must be identified and 
fully explained based on the airport sponsor's planned airport use. 
Each project that may be eligible under MAP must be clearly indicated 
and include the following information:

Airside

     Planned safety modifications including pavement, marking, 
lighting, drainage, or other structures or features to meet civil 
standards for approach, departure, and other protected airport surfaces 
as described in 14 CFR part 77, or airport design standards set forth 
in FAA Advisory Circular 150/5300-13A;
     Planned construction of facilities, such as passenger 
terminal gates, aprons for passenger terminals, taxiways to new 
terminal facilities, aircraft parking, and cargo facilities to 
accommodate civil use;
     Planned utility upgrades serving the civilian function and 
independent operation including: electrical, mechanical, communications 
lines, water, gas, sewer, storm drainage;
     Planned acquisition, construction, rehabilitation, or 
modification of facilities and equipment including: snow removal 
equipment, aircraft rescue and fire fighting facilities and equipment, 
security equipment, lighting vaults, and reconfiguration or relocation 
of eligible buildings for more efficient civil airport operations;
     Planned modifications of fuel farms to accommodate civil 
aviation use;
     Planned acquisition of additional land for runway 
protection zones, other approach protection, or airport development; 
and
     Planned modifications, which will permit the airfield to 
accommodate GA users.

Landside

     Planned construction, improvement, or repair of surface 
parking areas for passenger and air cargo terminals;
     Planned construction, improvement, or repair of access 
roads to provide efficient movement of vehicular traffic that leads 
directly to or from a passenger or air cargo terminal, fixed base 
operations, and aircraft maintenance areas; or
     Planned construction, improvement, or repair of 
facilities, such as passenger terminals, hangars, and air cargo 
terminal buildings.
    h. Evaluate the ability of surface transportation facilities (e.g., 
road, rail, high-speed rail, and/or maritime) to provide intermodal 
connections.
    i. Describe the type and level of aviation (and community) interest 
in the civil use of the current or former military airport.
    j. Provide one copy of the FAA-approved ALP with each application. 
The ALP must clearly describe capacity and conversion-related projects. 
Airport sponsors should also include other information, such as: 
Project cost(s), schedule, project justification(s), other project 
related maps and drawings showing the project location(s), and any 
other supporting documentation that would make the airport sponsor's 
application easier to understand. Airport sponsors may also include 
photos that further describe the airport, projects, and otherwise 
clarify certain aspects of the application. These maps and ALPs should 
be cross-referenced

[[Page 15194]]

with the project costs and descriptions noted elsewhere in the 
application.

Redesignation Applications

    Airport sponsors applying for redesignation to the MAP must submit 
the same information required of new candidate airport sponsors. 
Airport sponsors requesting redesignation must also answer the 
following questions:
    1. Why is a redesignation and additional MAP-eligible project 
funding needed to accomplish the conversion to a civilian-use airport?
    2. What is the preferred time period for redesignation (not to 
exceed 5 years)?
    3. Why would funding of eligible work under other categories of AIP 
or other sources of funding not accomplish the development needs of the 
airport?
    4. Airport sponsors applying for redesignation must provide a 
reanalysis of their original business/marketing plans (for example, a 
plan previously funded by the DOD's Office of Economic Adjustment or 
the original master plan for the airport) and prepare an updated plan. 
If no business/marketing plan exists, a business/marketing plan or 
strategy must be developed. The report must address these questions:
    a. Is the airport sponsor continuing to work towards the goals 
established in the business/marketing plan?
    b. How do the MAP projects contained in the application contribute 
to the goals of the airport sponsor and its plans?
    c. If the business/marketing plan no longer applies to the current 
goals of the airport sponsor, how has the airport sponsor altered the 
business/marketing plan to establish a new direction for the facility 
and how do the projects contained in the MAP application aid in the 
completion of the new direction and goals and by what date does the 
airport sponsor anticipate graduating from the MAP?

    This notice is issued pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 47118. Issued from 
Washington, DC, on April 4, 2018.
Elliott Black
Director, Office of Airport Planning and Programming.
[FR Doc. 2018-07228 Filed 4-6-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4910-13-P