[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 180 (Wednesday, September 16, 2020)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 57806-57808]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-20235]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 71

[Docket No. FAA-2020-0800; Airspace Docket No. 20-ANM-43]
RIN 2120-AA66


Proposed Revocation of Class D and Amendment of Class E Airspace; 
Gillette, WY

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).

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SUMMARY: This action proposes to remove the Class D airspace and modify 
the following: Class E surface area, the Class E airspace as an 
extension to the surface area and the Class E airspace extending upward 
from 700 feet AGL at Gillette-County Airport, Gillette, WY. In 
addition, this proposal would remove the VOR/DME from the legal 
description and replace the outdated term Airport Facility/Directory 
with the term Chart Supplement.
    After being informed that the Airport Traffic Control Tower at 
Gillette-County Airport is closed permanently, the FAA found it 
necessary to amend the existing airspace for the safety and management 
of Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) operations at this airport.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before November 2, 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-2020-0800; Airspace Docket No. 20-ANM-43, at the beginning of your 
comments. You may also submit comments through the internet at https://www.regulations.gov.
    FAA Order 7400.11E, 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

[[Page 57807]]

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 
7400.11E at NARA, email [email protected] or go to https://www.archives.gov/federal-register/cfr/ibr-locations.html.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Richard Roberts, Federal Aviation 
Administration, Western Service Center, Operations Support Group, 2200 
S. 216th Street, Des Moines, WA 98198; telephone (206) 231-2245.

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 remove the Class D and modify the Class E airspace at 
Gillette-County Airport, Gillette, WY 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. 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-2020-0800; 
Airspace Docket No. 20-ANM-43''. 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 7400.11E, Airspace 
Designations and Reporting Points, dated July 21, 2020, and effective 
September 15, 2020. FAA Order 7400.11E is publicly available as listed 
in the ADDRESSES section of this document. FAA Order 7400.11E 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 14 CFR part 71 to remove the 
Class D airspace and modify the following: Class E surface area, the 
Class E airspace as an extension to the Class E surface area and the 
Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet AGL at Gillette-
Campbell County Airport, Gillette, WY.
    The FAA was informed that the Airport Traffic Control Tower at 
Gillette-Campbell County Airport is closed, which is a basic 
qualification for the establishment of Class D airspace. As a result, 
the FAA is proposing to remove the Class D airspace and modify the 
Class E Surface Airspace at the airport. The Class E surface airspace 
would be expanded from 4.3 miles to 5 miles to ensure departures are 
contained in the surface area until reaching 700 feet AGL.
    The Class E airspace extending upward from the surface as an 
extension to the Class E surface area would be expanded to 3.4 miles 
each side of the 170[deg] bearing from 3 miles to 12 miles (formerly 
12.2 miles) south of the airport. This adjustment would protect 
aircraft as they descend through 1,000 feet AGL, while using the RNAV 
and ILS approaches to runway 34.
    The Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet would be 
modified to within 4 miles each side of the 170[deg] and 350[deg] 
bearings (reduced from 6.1 miles east and 8.3 miles west) and extend 14 
miles south (reduced from 15.3 miles) and 11 miles north (reduced from 
16.1miles). The additional airspace is no longer needed to protect 
departing aircraft to 1,200 feet and arrivals as they descend through 
1,500 feet AGL. This proposal would remove the Class E airspace 
extending upward from 1,200 feet as it is redundant with the Denver E6 
airspace and no longer needed.
    In addition, the legal descriptions for the Class E airspace 
extending upward from the surface as an extension to the Class E 
surface area and the Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet 
would be rewritten to eliminate the use of the VOR/DME as a reference 
point. The VOR/DME is no longer needed to adequately describe the 
airspace.
    The use of the term Airport Facility/Directory would be replaced 
with Chart Supplement and the geographical coordinates updated to match 
the FAA database.
    Class E airspace designations are published in paragraph 5000, 
6002, 6004, 6005 of FAA Order 7400.11E, dated July 21, 2020, and 
effective September 15, 2020, 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

[[Page 57808]]

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 7400.11E, 
Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, dated July 21, 2020, and 
effective September 15, 2020, is amended as follows:

Paragraph 5000 Class D Airspace.

* * * * *

ANM WY D Gillette, WY [Remove]

Gillette-Campbell County Airport, WY
    (Lat. 44[deg]20'56'' N, long. 105[deg]32'22'' W)

Paragraph 6002. Class E Airspace Designated as Surface Areas.

* * * * *

ANM WY E2 Gillette, WY [Amended]

Gillette-Campbell County Airport, WY
    (Lat. 44[deg]20'56'' N, long. 105[deg]32'22'' W)

    That airspace extending upward from the surface to and including 
6,900 feet MSL within a 5-mile radius of the Gillette-Campbell 
County Airport. This Class E airspace is effective during the 
specific dates and times established in advance by a Notice to 
Airmen. The effective date and time will thereafter be continuously 
published in the Chart Supplement.

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

* * * * *

ANM WY E4 Gillette, WY [Amended]

Gillette-Campbell County Airport, WY
    (Lat. 44[deg]20'56'' N, long. 105[deg]32'22'' W)

    That airspace extending upward from the surface within 3.4 miles 
each side of the Gillette County Airport 170[deg] bearing extending 
from the 5-mile radius of Gillette-Campbell County Airport to 12 
miles south of the airport.

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

* * * * *

ANM WY E5 Gillette, WY [Amended]

Gillette-Campbell County Airport, WY
    (Lat. 44[deg]20'56'' N, long. 105[deg]32'22'' W)

    That airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface 
of the earth within 4 miles each side of the 170[deg] bearing 
extending from the 5-mile radius to 14 miles south of the airport, 
and that airspace 4 miles each side of the 350[deg] bearing 
extending from the 5-mile radius to 11 miles north of the airport.

    Issued in Seattle, Washington, on September 8, 2020.
Byron Chew,
Acting Manager, Operations Support Group, Western Service Center.
[FR Doc. 2020-20235 Filed 9-15-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-13-P