[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 243 (Wednesday, December 18, 2019)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 69346-69347]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-27150]


 ========================================================================
 Proposed Rules
                                                 Federal Register
 ________________________________________________________________________
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 This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains notices to the public of 
 the proposed issuance of rules and regulations. The purpose of these 
 notices is to give interested persons an opportunity to participate in 
 the rule making prior to the adoption of the final rules.
 
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 

  Federal Register / Vol. 84, No. 243 / Wednesday, December 18, 2019 / 
Proposed Rules  

[[Page 69346]]



DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 71

[Docket No. FAA-2019-0328; Airspace Docket No. 18-ANM-5]
RIN 2120-AA66


Proposed Amendment of Class E Airspace; Rifle, CO

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).

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SUMMARY: This action proposes to amend the Class E airspace area, 
designated as a surface area, at the Rifle Garfield County Airport, 
Rifle, CO. The proposal would increase the circular radius of the area 
in the west and northwest of the airport. Also, this action proposes to 
amend the Class E airspace by adding a Class E airspace area, 
designated as an extension to a Class D or Class E surface area, to the 
east of the airport. Additionally, this action proposes to amend the 
Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface by 
removing extensions to the airspace's radius and increasing the radius 
of the airspace around most of the airport and reducing it to the north 
and northeast of the airport. Lastly, this action proposes several 
administrative updates to the airspace legal descriptions for the 
airport. These changes are necessary to accommodate airspace redesign 
for the safety and management of Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) 
operations at the airport.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before February 3, 2020.

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-2019-0328; Airspace Docket No. 18-ANM-5, at the beginning of your 
comments. You may also submit comments through the internet at https://www.regulations.gov.
    FAA Order 7400.11D, Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, and 
subsequent amendments can be viewed online at https://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 7400.11D at NARA, email [email protected] 
or go to https://www.archives.gov/federal-register/cfr/ibr-locations.html.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Matthew Van Der Wal, Federal Aviation 
Administration, Western Service Center, Operations Support Group, 2200 
S 216th Street, Des Moines, WA 98198; telephone (206) 231-3695.

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 Rifle Garfield County Airport, Rifle, 
CO, to ensure the safety and management of Instrument Flight Rules 
(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. 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-2019-0328; 
Airspace Docket No. 18-ANM-5''. 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 https://www.regulations.gov. Recently published rulemaking 
documents can also be accessed through the FAA's web page at https://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, 2200 S 216th Street, Des Moines, WA 
98198.

Availability and Summary of Documents for Incorporation by Reference

    This document proposes to amend FAA Order 7400.11D, Airspace 
Designations and Reporting Points,

[[Page 69347]]

dated August 8, 2019, and effective September 15, 2019. FAA Order 
7400.11D is publicly available as listed in the ADDRESSES section of 
this document. FAA Order 7400.11D 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 airspace at the Rifle 
Garfield County Airport, Rifle, CO. The action proposes to amend the 
Class E airspace designated as a surface area by increasing the 
circular radius in the west and northwest of the airport to contain IFR 
arrivals descending below 1,000 above the surface. That airspace 
extending upward from the surface within a 4.1-mile radius of the 
airport beginning at the 339[deg] bearing from the airport clockwise to 
the 243[deg] bearing from the airport, thence within a 5.2-mile radius 
of the airport from the 243[deg] bearing from the airport clockwise to 
the 339[deg] bearing from the Rifle Garfield County Airport.
    Also, this action proposes to add amend the Class E airspace by 
adding a Class E airspace area, designated an extension to Class D and 
Class E2 surface areas. That airspace extending upward from the surface 
within 1 mile north and 2.5 miles south of the 078[deg] bearing from 
the airport extending from the 4.1-mile radius to 8.5 miles east of the 
Rifle Garfield County Airport.
    Additionally, this action proposes to amend the Class E airspace 
extending upward from 700 feet above the surface by removing extensions 
from the airspace's radius and increasing the radius of the airspace 
around the most of the airport and reducing it to the north and 
northwest of the airport. That airspace extending upward from 700 feet 
above the surface within a 5.5-mile radius of the airport beginning at 
the 336[deg] bearing from the airport clockwise to the 065[deg] bearing 
from the airport, thence an 11-mile radius beginning at the 065[deg] 
bearing from the airport clockwise to the 336[deg] bearing from the 
Rifle Garfield County Airport.
    Lastly, the action proposes administrative updates to the 
airspace's legal description. The geographic coordinates need to be 
updated to (lat. 39[deg]31'36'' N, long. 107[deg]43'41'' W) to match 
the FAA's aeronautical database. The airport name needs to be updated 
to ``Rifle Garfield County Airport, Rifle, CO'', to match the FAA's 
aeronautical database. The Class E2 airspace should be full time; the 
following two sentences do not accurately represent the time of use for 
the Class E2 airspace and need to be removed: ``This Class E airspace 
area is effective during specific dates and times established in 
advance by a Notice to Airmen. The effective date and time will 
thereafter be continuously published in the Airport/Facility 
Directory.''
    Class E airspace designations are published in paragraphs 6002, 
6004 and 6005 of FAA Order 7400.11D, dated August 8, 2019, and 
effective September 15, 2019, 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. FAA Order 7400.11, 
Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, is published yearly and 
effective on September 15.

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 7400.11D, 
Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, dated August 8, 2019, and 
effective September 15, 2019, is amended as follows:

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

* * * * *

ANM CO E2 Rifle, CO [Amended]

Rifle Garfield County Airport, Rifle, CO
    (Lat. 39[deg]31'36'' N, long. 107[deg]43'41'' W)

    That airspace extending upward from the surface within a 4.1-
mile radius of airport beginning at the 339[deg] bearing from the 
airport clockwise to the 243[deg] bearing from the airport, thence a 
5.2-mile radius from the 243[deg] bearing from the airport to the 
339[deg] bearing from the Rifle Garfield County Airport.

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

* * * * *

ANM CO E4 Rifle, CO [New]

Rifle Garfield County Airport, Rifle, CO
    (Lat. 39[deg]31'36'' N, long. 107[deg]43'41'' W)

    That airspace extending upward from the surface within 1 mile 
north and 2.5 miles south of the 078[deg] bearing from the airport 
extending from the 4.1-mile radius to 8.5 miles east of the Rifle 
Garfield County Airport.

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

* * * * *

ANM CO E5 Rifle, CO [Amended]

Rifle Garfield County Airport, Rifle, CO
    (Lat. 39[deg]31'36'' N, long. 107[deg]43'41'' W)

    That airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface 
within a 5.5-mile radius of the airport from the 336[deg] bearing 
from the airport clockwise to the 065[deg] bearing from the airport 
thence an 11-mile radius beginning at the 065[deg] bearing from the 
airport clockwise to the 336[deg] bearing from the Rifle Garfield 
County Airport.

    Issued in Seattle, Washington, on December 11, 2019.
Tom Clark,
Group Manager, Operations Support Group, Western Service Center.
[FR Doc. 2019-27150 Filed 12-17-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4910-13-P