[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 199 (Monday, October 15, 2018)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 51901-51903]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-22192]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 71

[Docket No. FAA-2018-0879; Airspace Docket No. 18-AGL-24]
RIN 2120-AA66


Proposed Amendment of Class E Airspace; Oscoda, MI

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).

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SUMMARY: This action proposes to amend Class E surface airspace at 
Oscoda-Wurtsmith Airport, Oscoda, MI. The FAA is proposing this action 
as the result of an airspace review caused by the decommissioning of 
the Au Sable VHF omnidirectional range (VOR) navigation aid, which 
provided navigation guidance for the instrument procedures at the 
airport, as part of the VOR Minimum Operational Network (MON) Program. 
The geographic coordinates for the airport in the associated airspace 
would also be updated to coincide with the FAA's aeronautical database. 
Airspace redesign is necessary for the safety and management of 
instrument flight rules (IFR) operations at this airport.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before November 29, 2018.

ADDRESSES: Send comments on this proposal to the U.S. Department of 
Transportation, Docket Operations, West Building Ground Floor, Room 
W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590; telephone 
(202) 366-9826, or (800) 647-5527. You must identify FAA Docket No. 
FAA-2018-0879; Airspace Docket No. 18-AGL-24, at the beginning of your 
comments. You may also submit comments through the internet at http://www.regulations.gov. You may review the public docket containing the 
proposal, any comments received, and any final disposition in person in 
the Dockets Office between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, except Federal holidays.
    FAA Order 7400.11C, Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, and 
subsequent amendments can be viewed

[[Page 51902]]

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 7400.11C at NARA, call 
(202) 741-6030, or go to http://www.archives.gov/federal-register/cfr/ibr-locations.html.
    FAA Order 7400.11, Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, is 
published yearly and effective on September 15.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Walter Tweedy Federal Aviation 
Administration, Operations Support Group, Central Service Center, 10101 
Hillwood Parkway, Fort Worth, TX 76177; telephone (817) 222-5900.

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 surface airspace and Class E airspace areas 
extending upward from 700 feet or more above the surface at Oscoda-
Wurtsmith Airport, Oscoda, MI, to support IFR operations at the 
airport.

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. Commenters 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-2018-0879; 
Airspace Docket No. 18-AGL-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 Federal Aviation Administration, Air Traffic 
Organization, Central Service Center, Operations Support Group, 10101 
Hillwood Parkway, Fort Worth, TX 76177.

Availability and Summary of Documents for Incorporation by Reference

    This document proposes to amend FAA Order 7400.11C Airspace 
Designations and Reporting Points, dated August 13, 2018, and effective 
September 15, 2018. FAA Order 7400.11C is publicly available as listed 
in the ADDRESSES section of this document. FAA Order 7400.11C 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 amending Class E surface airspace 
within a 4.5-mile radius of Oscoda-Wurtsmith Airport, Oscoda, MI by 
removing the Au Sable VOR/DME and the associated extension to the 
southwest of the airport, due to the decommissioning of the Au Sable 
VOR, which provided navigation guidance to the instrument procedures at 
the airport, as part of the VOR MON Program.
    Also, the geographic coordinates of the airport in this airspace, 
and in Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the 
surface, would be adjusted to coincide with the FAA's aeronautical 
database.
    Class E airspace designations are published in paragraph 6002 and 
6005, respectively, of FAA Order 7400.11C, dated August 13, 2018, and 
effective September 15, 2018, which is incorporated by reference in 14 
CFR 71.1. The Class E airspace designation 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:

[[Page 51903]]

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 7400.11C, 
Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, dated August 13, 2018, and 
effective September 15, 2018, is amended as follows:

Paragraph 6002 Class E Airspace Areas Designated as Surface Areas.

* * * * *

AGL MI E2 Oscoda, MI [Amended]

Oscoda-Wurtsmith Airport, MI
    (Lat. 44[deg]27'06'' N, long. 83[deg]23'39'' W)

    Within a 4.5-mile radius of Oscoda-Wurtsmith Airport.
* * * * *

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

* * * * *

AGL MI E5 Oscoda, MI [Amended]

Oscoda-Wurtsmith Airport, MI
    (Lat. 44[deg]27'06'' N, long. 83[deg]23'39'' W)

    That airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface 
within a 7-mile radius of Oscoda-Wurtsmith Airport.

    Issued in Fort Worth, Texas, on October 3, 2018.
Walter Tweedy,
Acting Manager, Operations Support Group, ATO Central Service Center.
[FR Doc. 2018-22192 Filed 10-12-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4910-13-P