[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 8 (Friday, January 11, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 103-105]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-00052]



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 Notices
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  Federal Register / Vol. 84, No. 8 / Friday, January 11, 2019 / 
Notices  

[[Page 103]]

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Air Force


Decision Memorandum Accepting Alternative Arrangements for the 
U.S. Air Force's Interim Beddown of the F-22 Formal Training Unit at 
Eglin Air Force Base, Florida

AGENCY: Department of the Air Force, DoD.

ACTION: Notice of Decision Memorandum.

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

SUMMARY: The Department of the Air Force announces its decision to 
accept alternative arrangements approved by the Council on 
Environmental Quality (CEQ) for the Air Force's interim beddown of the 
F-22 Formal Training Unit at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida.

ADDRESSES: For further information contact: Mr. Jack Bush, 703-614-0237 
or [email protected]

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The text of the entire Decision Memorandum 
is provided as follows:

Decision Memorandum--Alternative Arrangements for Interim Beddown of F-
22 Formal Training Unit

    On December 21, 2019, the Department of the Air Force (Air Force) 
sought Council of Environmental Quality (CEQ) approval of alternative 
arrangements pursuant to 40 CFR 1506.11 for implementing the procedural 
provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act, 42 U.S.C. 4321, et 
seq. (NEPA), for the beddown of the Air Force's F-22 Formal Training 
Unit. This memorandum documents the Air Force's decision to accept the 
alternative procedures.

Background

    NEPA: NEPA requires the Air Force to undertake an assessment of the 
environmental effects of its proposed actions prior to making 
decisions. The CEQ Regulations for Implementing the Procedural 
Provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act provide for 
situations when emergency circumstances make it necessary to make a 
decision and take action with potentially significant environmental 
impact without observing the provisions of the CEQ Regulations (40 CFR 
1506.11). Specifically, the agency should consult with CEQ about 
alternative arrangements for actions necessary to control the immediate 
impacts of the emergency.
    F-22 Raptor: The F-22 is the United States' premier fighter 
aircraft, which is essential to national security. It is a specialized 
``Fifth-Generation'' fighter which introduces a large array of sensors 
that can detect both air and ground targets and share that data with 
other U.S. and Allied aircraft. The F-22 possesses a sophisticated 
sensor suite allowing the pilot to track, identify, shoot and kill air-
to-air threats before being detected. Significant advances in cockpit 
design and sensor fusion improve the pilot's situational awareness. It 
is also ``Low Observable,'' which makes it a stealth platform that can 
be extremely difficult to detect. This combination means that F-22 
pilots can see the enemy, but cannot be seen. The F-22's 
characteristics provide a synergistic effect ensuring F-22 lethality 
against all advanced air threats. The combination of stealth, 
integrated avionics and supercruise (traveling faster than the speed of 
sound without using afterburner) drastically shrinks surface-to-air 
missile engagement envelopes and minimizes enemy capabilities to track 
and engage the F-22. The combination of reduced observability and 
supercruise accentuates the advantage of surprise in a tactical 
environment. Maintenance of these advantages is vital as the Air Force 
prepares for conflicts with near-peer nations, and would also be 
invaluable against others emerging threats.
    Nature of the Emergency: In October 2018, Hurricane Michael 
displaced the Air Force's only F-22 Formal Training Unit (FTU), which 
consists of the F-22 aircraft in the 43rd Fighter Squadron and its 
associated T-38 Talon aircraft, a two-seat twinjet supersonic jet 
trainer in the 2d Fighter Training Squadron, from its home at Tyndall 
Air Force Base (AFB), Florida, to Joint Base Langley-Eustis in 
Virginia. This temporary relocation disrupted the current student pilot 
full-rate Basic Course. Hurricane Michael's subsequent devastation of 
Tyndall AFB further aggravated deficiencies in the F-22 pilot 
production pipeline by rendering many of the FTU's facilities unusable 
for the foreseeable future. The production of trained and qualified F-
22 pilots completely stopped for two months, exacerbating the current 
pilot shortage that the Air Force is facing. This situation will worsen 
unless the Air Force can restart F-22 FTU full-rate training by January 
2019, because all student pilots are currently unable to perform 
qualifying flights. As current F-22 pilots retire or separate from the 
Service, the Air Force needs to produce the same numbers and more to 
maintain its combat readiness.
    When Hurricane Michael struck Tyndall AFB, the F-22 FTU had 14 
Basic Course students, two Track 2 students, and one Track 1 student 
enrolled in training. Track 2 is for previously qualified F-22 pilots 
who are no longer current, and Track 1 is for current fighter pilots 
who have not flown the F-22. The Track 1 student had completed a 
majority of his training and returned to his operational unit to 
complete his transition. The two Track 2 students were returned to 
their gaining operational units without accomplishing any training. The 
gaining operational units will assume the resource burden and risk to 
train the one Track 1 and the two Track 2 students. The 14 Basic Course 
students were approximately 90 days into their 160 day course. On 
average the students had completed only 8 of the 38 total syllabus 
flying sorties. The F-22 FTU restarted limited student flying at Eglin 
AFB on December 6, 2018, after nearly two months of no flying. Flying 
was limited so that operations would fall within the parameters of an 
existing Air Force Categorical Exclusion (CATEX), CATEX A2.3.31 in 32 
CFR part 989, Appendix B, which covers relocating a small number of 
aircraft that does not significantly increase flying hours or number of 
operations. The Air Force will be unable to rely on this CATEX beyond 
January 31, 2019. The delays in F-22 FTU student training will delay 
the Basic Course pilots arriving at their operational units, negatively 
impacting unit manning.
    The F-22 is a niche fighter community due to the small number of

[[Page 104]]

primary mission aircraft inventory (combat-coded aircraft), just 123 
total jets. There are less than 250 Regular Air Force F-22 pilots plus 
an additional 40 full-time Air Reserve Component F-22 pilots actively 
serving. These numbers include all F-22 student pilots, operational 
pilots, pilots on staff and at school. The goal for active component 
Air Force manning in operational units by June 2019 is 100%. In fiscal 
year (FY) 2018, the Air Force lost 19 F-22 pilots due to retirement, 
separation, or promotion to Colonel (O-6). Additionally, only 6 of the 
11 F-22 pilots (54%) eligible for the initial pilot bonus in FY18 
accepted the bonus, indicating 5 more F-22 pilots will be leaving the 
Air Force soon. The small size of the F-22 community, combined with the 
number of pilots either lost or uncommitted, demands the continued 
full-scale production of F-22 Basic Course students.
    Purpose and Need for Agency Action: The purpose of the proposed 
action is to enable the Air Force to quickly get back to full-rate 
Basic Course Student, Transition, and Instructor Pilot production to 
mitigate potentially severe adverse impacts to the Nation's military 
readiness. On average, the F-22 FTU trains 28 Basic Course pilots, 20 
Transition Course pilots, and 9 Instructor Pilots each fiscal year. The 
need for the proposed action is to enable the Air Force to avoid 
further delay to restarting F-22 FTU operations or achieving full F-22 
pilot production capacity that will have negative impacts to the entire 
F-22 operational force, the United States' sole fully-operational 5th 
Generation fighter. Delays to restarting F-22 FTU operations will 
create a bottleneck in fighter pilot production, generate a backlog of 
undergraduate pilot training graduates, and exacerbate the fighter 
pilot manning crisis.

Agency Proposal

    Proposed Action and Alternatives: The proposed action is to restore 
training of replacement pilots for the F-22 FTU by January 31, 2019 at 
Eglin AFB, Florida until the Air Force decides on and implements a 
permanent beddown. While Hurricane Michael rendered many of the 
facilities used by the F-22 FTU inoperable, and total recovery is 
estimated to take between three and five years, two very important 
facilities for the F-22 FTU at Tyndall AFB survived Michael's 
destruction: The Special Access Program (SAP) flight simulators and the 
low observable coatings maintenance facility.
    These two facilities at Tyndall AFB are approximately 89 miles away 
from Eglin AFB. The survival of the simulators and low observable 
maintenance facilities, coupled with other factors such as the 
substantial instructor and maintenance workforce made up of 
contractors, civilian employees, and Air Force Reserve and Guard 
personnel who are unable or unwilling to relocate, in part because they 
need to attend to the repair of their own homes, make nearby Eglin AFB 
the only near-term alternative to quickly reestablish and resume the F-
22 pilot production pipeline. Further, the Air Force Reserve and Guard 
personnel make up twenty-five percent of the F-22 FTU's instructor 
pilots. Nearby Eglin AFB's main airfield (Eglin Main) has existing ramp 
and operating capacity for the F-22 FTU. Relocating the F-22 FTU to 
Eglin AFB also enables the F-22 FTU to use the same Special Use 
Airspace in the Gulf of Mexico that it is accustomed to training in and 
access to its Air Force Reserve/Guard, civilian, and contractor 
personnel in the region. Joint Base Langley-Eustis has no F-22 FTU 
instructors and lacks the robust simulators that are available at 
Tyndall AFB. Moving the SAP simulators at Tyndall AFB to another 
location is estimated to take one year and cost $22 million, and the 
Air Force cannot accept further delayed or degraded F-22 simulator 
capacity for training.
    The lack of ready access to F-22 simulator capacity, F-22 weapons 
and tactics trainer cockpits, classified academic space, and F-22 
qualified academic/simulator instructors at any location other than 
Tyndall AFB is the reason no other F-22 base, to include Joint Base 
Langley-Eustis, is a reasonable alternative compared to Eglin AFB at 
the current time. The Academic Simulator Building (ASB) at Tyndall AFB 
serves as the hub for all F-22 FTU instruction--from computer based 
instruction, academic lessons, 14 weapons and tactics trainer cockpits, 
and eight full mission simulators--the ASB support over 68% of the F-22 
Basic Course syllabus. The ASB received minimal damage from Hurricane 
Michael and has already been restored to full operational capability. 
The ASB is the cornerstone to F-22 FTU operations.
    Affected Environment: Currently there are 52,000 annual operations 
at Eglin Main. Projected annual operations for the FTU's F-22s and 
associated T-38s could reach 31,000. Interim basing of the F-22 FTU at 
Eglin AFB would therefore potentially result in a 45% increase to Eglin 
Main's 52,000 annual operations, including a potential nineteen-percent 
increase in nighttime operations.
    The Air Force has preliminarily identified noise as the only 
projected significant environmental impact from the proposed action 
under the alternative arrangements. A preliminary noise analysis of 
adding the F-22 FTU to Eglin AFB revealed potentially significant 
impacts. The increase in operations from the FTU's aircraft will create 
a measurable increase in the 65 decibel (dB) Day-Night Average Sound 
Level (DNL) noise contour on the south, east, and west side of Eglin 
Main. Additionally, operations from the FTU's aircraft will increase 
the 65 dB DNL contour to the southwest and northeast which will impact 
populated areas and other noise sensitive environments including 
residential homes, schools, churches, recreational facilities, and 
other community facilities. The DNL noise contour increases suggest 
that the mission will have the potential to cause significant impacts 
to the areas to the west and southwest of Eglin Main due to increases 
of 5 dB in the 65 dB and above DNL noise contours from proposed F-22 
operations.
    The FTU's F-22 closed-pattern and departure operations of up to 
22,000 and 4,000 annual operations, respectively, are the primary cause 
of projected noise increases at and around Eglin Main. Tyndall AFB will 
not be available as a Precision Instrument Approach Field for any 
closed-pattern operations until the Air Traffic Control Tower, the 
Radar Approach Control system, and navigational aids are restored. The 
Air Force's current best estimate is that these functions will not be 
fully restored at Tyndall AFB before July 2019. Therefore, Tyndall AFB 
will not be available as a potential operational mitigation for noise 
from F-22 closed-pattern and approach operations until that time. 
Ultimately, any final suite of mitigation measures for the interim 
basing of the F-22 FTU at Eglin AFB will have to account for other 
relevant non-FTU aircraft operations.
    Environmental Impact Assessment and Alternative Arrangements: The 
Air Force will prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) for the 
permanent beddown for the F-22 FTU, with scoping planned for next year. 
This EIS will inform the Air Force Strategic Basing Process' selection 
of a permanent beddown location for the F-22 FTU. The Strategic Basing 
Process typically involves the identification and Secretarial approval 
of objective basing criteria, the rank ordering of locations based on 
application of those criteria from an enterprise of locations, the 
winnowing of those locations to a small number of candidate bases,

[[Page 105]]

identification of preferred and reasonable locations, and the final 
selection of the basing location. The candidate bases constitute the 
reasonable alternatives for NEPA purposes, and once identified, allow 
for the issuance of a NEPA Notice of Intent. The Air Force cannot delay 
F-22 pilot production until these actions are completed without 
irreparable harm to the National Security Strategy posture. Therefore, 
in accordance with the provisions of 40 CFR 1506.11, the Air Force 
initiated consultation with the CEQ and requested alternative 
arrangements for the interim basing of the F-22 FTU at Eglin AFB, 
Florida.
    Alternative Arrangements: The Air Force accepts the alternative 
arrangements prescribed below, as approved by CEQ's letter of December 
21, 2018, for the interim beddown of the F-22 FTU at Eglin AFB.
    Environmental Assessment: The Air Force will undertake immediately 
the preparation of an environmental assessment of the interim beddown. 
The Air Force will strive to complete the draft EA by February 28, 
2019, and issue it for public review and comment for at least 30 days. 
The draft EA will identify any proposed mitigation measures that would 
address any significant impacts identified in the draft EA. The Air 
Force will complete the final EA and issue a Record of Decision no 
later than April 30, 2019. The Record of Decision will set forth the 
practicable mitigation measures that the Air Force will implement for 
the interim beddown in accordance with 40 CFR 1505.2 and 1505.3.
    Environmental Impact Statement: The Air Force will undertake an EIS 
for the permanent beddown of the F-22 FTU. The EIS will include an 
assessment of the reasonable alternatives for the permanent beddown. 
The Air Force will issue a Notice of Intent to prepare an EIS as soon 
as possible, but no later than April 1, 2019. The Air Force will 
develop a timeline for the NEPA process, including all milestones and 
authorization processes, and submit the timeline to CEQ for its review 
and approval. To ensure that NEPA compliance proceeds as expeditiously 
as possible, and consistent with Executive Order 13807 on Establishing 
Discipline and Accountability in the Environmental Review and 
Permitting Process for Infrastructure, the Air Force will develop a 
permitting timetable that identifies milestones for this environmental 
review and authorization process. The Air Force will provide its 
timetable to CEQ within one month of the date of CEQ's letter and 
update the timetable monthly to ensure that the environmental review 
process is completed as expeditiously as is practicable, with a goal of 
completion of a Record of Decision approximately 2 years (or less) from 
the date of the Notice of Intent to prepare an EIS. The Air Force's 
Federal Register notice for the EIS preparation will describe these 
alternative arrangements and their relationship to the EIS for long-
term F-22 beddown decisions.
    Public Participation Measures: The alternative arrangements include 
the following public participation measures that supplement the 
proposal set forth in the Air Force letter. The Air Force will provide 
notice of these alternative arrangements and submit this Decision 
Memorandum for publication in the Federal Register within 10 business 
days. The Air Force also will publish notice of these alternative 
arrangements in local newspapers likely to reach interested parties 
including the Northwest Florida Daily News and the Bay Beacon.
    Additionally, the Air Force will provide notice of these 
alternative arrangements to the interested parties listed in Appendix A 
of the 2014 Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement. The 
notices will specifically seek input on the interim and final beddown, 
and include an offer to meet with Air Force representatives and CEQ to 
discuss the alternative arrangements.
    The Air Force will reconstitute and reconvene the Noise Committee 
with representatives of the counties and municipalities of Walton, 
Okaloosa, and Santa Rosa Counties. The Air Force will use the Noise 
Committee to gather information for the development of the 
environmental assessment and environmental impact statement.
    The Air Force will provide CEQ with copies of any notices made in 
accordance with these alternative arrangements and post notices online 
at https://www.eglin.af.mil/.
    Other Measures: The Air Force and CEQ will convene monthly meetings 
to discuss the status of the NEPA process with interested components of 
the Executive Office of the President. At the conclusion of the 
alternative arrangements and no later than 2 years from the date of the 
Notice of Intent to prepare an EIS, the Air Force will provide a report 
to CEQ on the use of the alternative arrangements that reviews the 
value and effectiveness of these arrangements. The Air Force will 
provide notice of the report in the Federal Register, local newspapers, 
including those specified above, and online at https://www.eglin.af.mil/.

Henry Williams,
Civ, DAF, Acting Air Force Federal Register Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. 2019-00052 Filed 1-10-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 5001-10-P