[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 90 (Wednesday, May 9, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21335-21338]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-09894]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration


Notice of Submission Deadline for Schedule Information for 
Chicago O'Hare International Airport, John F. Kennedy International 
Airport, Los Angeles International Airport, Newark Liberty 
International Airport, and San Francisco International Airport for the 
Winter 2018/2019 Scheduling Season

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

ACTION: Notice of submission deadline.

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SUMMARY: Under this notice, the FAA announces the submission deadline 
of May 17, 2018, for winter 2018/2019

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flight schedules at Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD), John F. 
Kennedy International Airport (JFK), Los Angeles International Airport 
(LAX), Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR), and San Francisco 
International Airport (SFO). The deadline coincides with the schedule 
submission deadline for the International Air Transport Association 
(IATA) Slot Conference for the winter 2018/2019 scheduling season.

DATES: Schedules must be submitted no later than May 17, 2018.

ADDRESSES: Schedules may be submitted by mail to the Slot 
Administration Office, AGC-200, Office of the Chief Counsel, 800 
Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20591; facsimile: 202-267-7277; 
or by email to: [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bryan Bourgoin, System Operations 
Services, Air Traffic Organization, Federal Aviation Administration, 
AJR-0, Room 300W, 800 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20591; 
telephone number: 202-267-0968; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The FAA has designated EWR, LAX, ORD\\, and 
SFO as IATA Level 2 airports and JFK as an IATA Level 3 airport under 
the Worldwide Slot Guidelines (WSG). The FAA currently limits scheduled 
operations at JFK by Order until October 27, 2018.\1\ The FAA intends 
to extend the effective date of the JFK Order prior to the expiration 
of the current Order.
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    \1\ Operating Limitations at John F. Kennedy International 
Airport, 73 FR 3510 (Jan. 18, 2008), as amended 81 FR 40167 (June 
21, 2016).
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    The FAA is primarily concerned about scheduled and other regularly 
conducted commercial operations during peak hours, but carriers may 
submit schedule plans for the entire day. At ORD, the peak hours for 
the winter 2018/2019 scheduling season are 0700 to 2100 Central Time 
(1300 to 0300 UTC), at LAX and SFO from 0600 to 2300 Pacific Time (1400 
to 0700 UTC), and at EWR and JFK from 0600 to 2300 Eastern Time (1100 
to 0400 UTC). These hours are unchanged from previous scheduling 
seasons. Carriers should submit schedule information in sufficient 
detail including, at minimum, the marketing or operating carrier, 
flight number, scheduled time of operation, frequency, aircraft 
equipment, and effective dates. IATA standard schedule information 
format and data elements for communications at Level 2 and Level 3 
airports in the IATA Standard Schedules Information Manual (SSIM) 
Chapter 6 may be used. The WSG provides additional information on 
schedule submissions at Level 2 and Level 3 airports.
    The U.S. winter scheduling season is from October 28, 2018, through 
March 30, 2019, in recognition of the IATA northern winter scheduling 
period. The FAA understands there may be differences in schedule times 
due to different U.S. daylight saving time dates and will accommodate 
these differences to the extent possible.

General Information for All Airports

    The FAA considers several factors and priorities as it reviews 
schedule requests at Level 2 airports. The WSG states that schedule 
facilitation is based on schedule adjustments mutually agreed between 
the airlines and the facilitator; to avoid exceeding the airport's 
coordination parameters, that the concepts of historic precedence and 
series of slots do not apply at Level 2 airports, and that the 
facilitator should adjust the smallest number of flights by the least 
amount of time necessary to avoid exceeding the airport's coordination 
parameters. The WSG also includes priorities such as services from the 
previous equivalent season over new demand for the same timings, 
services that are unchanged over services that plan to change time or 
other capacity relevant parameters, introduction of year-round 
services, effective period of operation, regularly planned operations 
over ad hoc operations, and other operational factors that may limit a 
carrier's timing flexibility. In addition, Congress, the Department of 
Transportation (DOT), through the FAA and the Office of the Secretary 
(OST), and the Department of Justice have adopted a number of measures 
to promote competition and new entry at U.S. slot controlled airports 
and, likewise, the WSG has priorities to consider new entry and 
competition at Level 3 airports. The FAA prioritizes new entrant 
flights within the scheduling limits for the airport.
    Generally, the FAA uses average hourly runway capacity throughput 
for airports and performance metrics in its schedule reviews at Level 2 
airports.\2\ The FAA also considers other factors that can affect 
operations, such as capacity changes due to runway, taxiway, or other 
airport construction, air traffic control procedural changes, airport 
surface operations, or historical or projected flight delays and 
congestion. At JFK, the scheduling limit of 81 operations per hour is 
established in the FAA Order.
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    \2\ The FAA typically determines an airport's average adjusted 
runway capacity or throughput for Level 2 and Level 3 airports by 
reviewing hourly data on the arrival and departure rates that air 
traffic control indicates could be accepted for that hour, commonly 
known as ``called'' rates. We also review the actual number of 
arrivals and departures that operated in the same hour. Generally, 
the FAA uses the higher of the two numbers, called or actual, for 
identifying trends and schedule review purposes. Some dates are 
excluded from analysis, such as during periods when extended airport 
closures or construction could affect capacity.
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    Slot management in the United States differs from other countries 
that follow the IATA WSG. In the United States, the FAA is responsible 
for facilitation and coordination of runway access for takeoffs and 
landings at Level 2 and Level 3 airports; however, the airport 
authority or its designee is responsible for facilitation and 
coordination of terminal/gate/airport facility access. The process with 
the individual airports for terminal access and other airport services 
is separate from, and in addition to, the FAA schedule review based on 
runway capacity. Approval from both the FAA and the airport authority 
for runway and airport availability, respectively, is necessary before 
implementing schedule plans. Contact information for Level 2 and Level 
3 airports is available at http://www.iata.org/policy/slots/Pages/slot-guidelines.aspx.
    The FAA seeks to improve communications with carriers and schedule 
facilitators at Level 2 airports on potential runway schedule issues or 
terminal and gate issues that may affect the runway times. The FAA also 
seeks to reduce the time that carriers consider proposed offers on 
schedules, especially within peak periods or in periods of limited 
availability with competing requests. Retaining open offers for 
extended periods of time may delay the facilitation process for the 
airport. Reducing this delay is particularly important to allow the FAA 
to make informed decisions at airports where some hours are at or near 
the scheduling limits. If carriers do not accept the offers or continue 
to submit revised schedules that are above the limits, the FAA cannot 
effectively assess the final proposed schedules. The agency recognizes 
that there are circumstances that may require some schedules to remain 
pending. However, the FAA expects to substantially complete the process 
on initial submissions each scheduling season within 30 days of the end 
of the Slot Conference. After this time, the agency would confirm the 
acceptance of offers or issue a denial of schedule requests so that 
there is no ambiguity about the initial approved and unapproved 
schedules.
    Finally, the FAA notes that the schedule information submitted by 
carriers to the FAA may be subject to

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disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). The WSG also 
provides for release of information at certain stages of slot 
coordination and schedule facilitation. In general, once it takes 
action, the FAA may release information on slot allocation or similar 
slot transactions or schedule information reviewed as part of the 
schedule facilitation process. The FAA does not expect that practice to 
change and most slot and schedule information would not be exempt from 
release under FOIA. The FAA recognizes that some airlines may submit 
information on schedule plans that is not available to the public and 
may be considered by the carrier to be proprietary. Carriers that 
submit slot or schedule information deemed proprietary should clearly 
mark such information accordingly. The FAA will take the necessary 
steps to protect properly designated information to the extent 
allowable by law.

JFK Schedules

    The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) plans 
construction on JFK Runway 13L/31R. The FAA will review the final 
phasing and assess the operational impacts once the construction plans 
are available. Mitigation strategies for prior runway construction 
projects could be used as needed. These include a ``playbook'' 
describing operational plans for various runway configurations and 
operating conditions, working with carriers to reduce schedules during 
certain periods or retime flights to less congested periods, limiting 
approval for new flights, or encouraging temporary reductions by 
waiving minimum slot usage requirements. The PANYNJ holds regular 
meetings with airlines and other stakeholders to discuss construction 
plans and consults with the FAA and local air traffic control 
facilities to minimize operational impacts. JFK operators also meet 
regularly to discuss operational issues at the airport. The FAA meets 
quarterly with stakeholders on operational issues in the greater New 
York City area. These various local meetings may be the best source of 
current construction-related information to assist in planning 
schedules and operations.

EWR Schedules

    The FAA is continuing to monitor operations and delays at EWR, 
especially in the busiest afternoon and evening hours. The FAA 
announced the change in designation to Level 2 at EWR in April 2016.\3\ 
Delays in summer 2016 increased over summer 2015, in part because 
allocated slots in the afternoon and evening hours were used at higher 
rates than in 2015. Subsequently, as expected, delays further increased 
as a result of new entry at EWR enabled by the change to Level 2. 
However, compared to summer 2007 when the airport operated without 
scheduling limits and slots \4\, most performance metrics for summer 
2017 were better than summer 2007 despite the additional flights under 
Level 2. The FAA recognizes there have been a number of changes in the 
NYC area since 2007, including changes in airspace and procedures, 
regulatory changes such as crew flight and duty time and long flight 
(tarmac) delays, and network management by airlines. The FAA is 
reviewing the current performance goals as well as any related capacity 
and operational impacts caused by these changes.
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    \3\ Change of Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) 
Designation, 81 FR 19861 (Apr. 6, 2016).
    \4\ Order Limiting Scheduled Operations at Newark Liberty 
International Airport, 73 FR 29550 (May 21, 2008). The EWR Order 
took effect in June 2008. In addition to reviewing performance 
metrics on a year-over-year basis for the busiest summer months, one 
FAA goal in adopting the Order was to manage schedules and keep 
delays from exceeding summer 2007 levels. In summer 2017, the number 
of arriving flights delayed by two hours or more increased by 5.5 
percent compared to summer 2007.
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    Since transitioning to Level 2, requests for flights in the 
afternoon and evening hours have consistently exceeded the scheduling 
limits at EWR. The FAA advised carriers it would not be able to 
accommodate all requests for new operations and has reached agreement 
in most cases with carriers to retime flights as necessary in the 
initial seasons under Level 2. For the summer 2018 season, the FAA 
lowered the scheduling limit from 81 to 79 operations per hour based on 
an updated airport capacity analysis and review of summer 2017 
performance. The winter season limits were already at 79 per hour based 
on winter season capacity analyses. For summer 2018, the FAA encouraged 
carriers to reduce operations in the peak periods and operate flights 
in less congested hours to improve operations and reduce delays, 
particularly in the afternoon and evening hours. However, the FAA 
advised it would accept flights above the new hourly limits if the 
flights were operated in summer 2017. The FAA also indicated new 
flights were possible in hours with fewer than 79 operations.
    Despite the FAA's efforts to facilitate voluntary scheduling 
cooperation at EWR, certain carriers have been unwilling to reduce 
operations in peak hours to assist with the growing delays. Average 
demand for summer 2018 in the afternoon and evening hours remains at 81 
operations per hour as it was in summer 2017. There are periods when 
the demand in half-hours or consecutive half-hours exceeds the optimum 
runway capacity. The imbalance of scheduled arrivals and departures in 
certain periods has also contributed to increased congestion and delays 
when the demand exceeds the called arrival or departure rates. For 
example, early afternoon arrivals exceed optimum runway capacity and 
air traffic control regularly implements traffic management initiatives 
including ground delay programs. Recent FAA modeling indicates retiming 
arrivals from the 1400 hour to the 1300 and 1200 hours could have 
significant delay reduction benefits and help preserve the Level 2 
designation at EWR.
    For the summer 2018 season, airlines generally agreed to retime 
requests for new flights to periods outside of the peak hours. However, 
this growth has resulted in more hours with operations at the 
scheduling limits. As the summer 2018 schedules are expected to be 
similar to summer 2017, the performance metrics are highly unlikely to 
improve without further summer schedule adjustments.
    In light of the increasing delays in the peak afternoon hours due 
to the unwillingness of certain carriers to voluntarily retime historic 
flights into other less congested periods and the imbalance of arrivals 
and departures, the FAA is adopting new half-hourly scheduling limits 
of 43 operations, in addition to the current hourly limit of 79 per 
hour. As noted earlier, it is important to maintain a balance between 
arrivals and departures to limit delays. The maximum number of arrivals 
or departures, respectively, which can be accommodated is 43 in an hour 
and 24 in a half-hour. This would allow some higher levels of 
operations in certain periods (not to exceed the hourly limits) and 
some recovery from lower demand in adjacent periods.\5\ The FAA is 
seeking voluntary cooperation by all carriers to retime flights within 
the described limits. Based on the average winter 2017/2018 schedules, 
modest changes would be needed in only a few periods to be within these 
limits. Additional flights could be approved in hours that are below 
the scheduling limits.
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    \5\ The half-hour and arrival and departure limits are 
approximately 55 percent of the typical hourly adjusted airport 
capacity.
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    Based on demand in winter 2017/2018 and summer 2018, the FAA 
anticipates the highest demand for flights will be in the 0700 and 0800 
local hours (1200 to 1359 UTC) and

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1400 to 2159 local hours (1900 to 0259 UTC). Requests for new flights 
will not be approved unless the hourly scheduled operations are within 
the previously described hourly limits. Consistent with the WSG, 
carriers should be prepared to adjust schedules to meet the hourly 
limits in order to minimize potential congestion and delay.
    The FAA seeks to reach agreement with carriers to schedule flights 
within the scheduling limits and urges all carriers to cooperate. The 
FAA is introducing the half-hourly and arrivals and departures limits 
within each hour in an effort to preserve the Level 2 designation at 
EWR. If voluntary schedule adjustments are not achievable and delays 
continue to increase, the FAA will consider whether a Level 3 
designation is necessary. If a Level 3 designation is warranted, the 
FAA will work closely with OST regarding policies for the 
reintroduction of slot controls at EWR, which may include considering 
options to address access at the airport. In addition, the DOT and the 
FAA will determine whether a schedule reduction meeting is necessary 
pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 41722.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on May 4, 2018.
Jeffrey Planty,
Deputy Vice President, System Operations Services.
[FR Doc. 2018-09894 Filed 5-8-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4910-13-P