[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 223 (Wednesday, November 18, 2020)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 73436-73437]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-25400]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 71

[Docket No. FAA-2020-0889; Airspace Docket No. 20-ASO-25]
RIN 2120-AA66


Proposed Amendment of Class D Airspace, and Class E Airspace; 
Smyrna, TN

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).

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SUMMARY: This action proposes to amend Class D airspace, and Class E 
airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface at Smyrna 
Airport, Smyrna, TN. An evaluation of airspace in the area determined 
this airport to require an adjustment of Class D and E airspace. 
Controlled airspace is necessary for the safety and management of 
instrument flight rules (IFR) operations in the area.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before January 4, 2021.

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 20590-0001; 
Telephone: (800) 647-5527, or (202) 366-9826. You must identify the 
Docket No. FAA-2020-0889; Airspace Docket No. 20-ASO-25, 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 on-line 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 7400.11E at NARA, email [email protected] 
or go to https://www.archives.gov/federal-register/cfr/ibr-locations.html.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John Fornito, Operations Support 
Group, Eastern Service Center, Federal Aviation Administration, 1701 
Columbia Avenue, College Park, GA 30337; Telephone (404) 305-6364.

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 D airspace and Class E extending upward from 
700 feet above the surface at Smyrna Airport, Smyrna, TN, to support 
IFR operations in the area.

Comments Invited

    Interested persons are invited to comment on 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 (Docket No. FAA-
2020-0889 and Airspace Docket No. 20-ASO-25) and be submitted in 
triplicate to DOT Docket Operations (see ADDRESSES section for the 
address and phone number). You may also submit comments through the 
internet at https://www.regulations.gov.
    Persons wishing the FAA to acknowledge receipt of their comments on 
this action must submit with those comments a self-addressed stamped 
postcard on which the following statement is made: ``Comments to FAA 
Docket No. FAA-2020-0889; Airspace Docket No. 20-ASO-25.'' 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 document may be changed in light of the 
comments received. All comments submitted will be available for 
examination in the public docket both before and after the comment 
closing date. 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 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 between 8:00 a.m. and 
4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, except federal holidays at the office 
of the Eastern Service Center, Federal Aviation Administration, Room 
350, 1701 Columbia Avenue, College Park, GA 30337.

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,

[[Page 73437]]

air traffic service routes, and reporting points.

The Proposal

    The FAA proposes an amendment to Title 14 Code of Federal 
Regulations part 71 to amend Class D airspace for Smyrna, TN as the FAA 
has determined that extensions of 1.2 miles each side of the 142[deg] 
bearing from the airport, extending from the 3.9-mile radius to 5.5-
miles southeast of the airport, and within 1.2-miles each side of the 
181[deg] bearing from the airport, extending from the 3.9-mile radius 
to 5.5-miles south of the airport are necessary for the safety of IFR 
aircraft landing at Smyrna Airport. Also, the Class D ceiling would be 
reduced from 3,000 feet to 2,500 feet as per the request of the air 
traffic facilities involved. In addition, the FAA proposes to update 
Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface by 
increasing the airport radius from 9-miles to 11.5 miles. Also, the 
reference to Nashville Class C, in the Class D description, would be 
removed as it is not necessary (7400.11, 1003.b).
    Class D airspace and Class E airspace designations are published in 
Paragraphs 5000 and 6005, respectively, 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 D and 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 proposed regulation only involves 
an established body of technical regulations for which frequent and 
routine amendments are necessary to keep them operationally current. 
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 minimal. Since this is a routine matter that will 
only affect air traffic procedures and air navigation, it is certified 
that this proposed rule, when promulgated, will 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.

Lists of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 71

    Airspace, Incorporation by reference, Navigation (air).

The Proposed Amendment

    In consideration of the foregoing, 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 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 Federal Aviation 
Administration 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.

* * * * *

ASO TN D Smyrna, TN [Amended]

Smyrna Airport, TN
    (Lat. 36[deg]00'32'' N, long. 86[deg]31'12'' W)

    That airspace extending upward from the surface to but not 
including 2,500 feet MSL within a 3.9-mile radius of the Smyrna 
Airport, and within 1.2 miles each side of the 142[deg] bearing from 
the airport, extending from the 3.9-mile radius to 5.5-miles 
southeast of the airport, and within 1.2-miles each side of 
the181[deg] bearing from the airport, extending from the 3.9-mile 
radius to 5.5-miles south of the airport. This Class D airspace area 
is effective during the specific dates and times established in 
advance by a Notice to Airmen. The effective dates and times will 
thereafter be continuously published in the Chart Supplement.

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

* * * * *

ASO TN E5 Nashville, TN [Amended]

Nashville International Airport, TN
    (Lat. 36[deg]07'28'' N, long. 86[deg]40'41'' W)
Smyrna Airport
    (Lat. 36[deg]00'32'' N, long. 86[deg]31'12'' W)
Sumner County Regional Airport
    (Lat. 36[deg]22'30'' N, long. 86[deg]24'30'' W)
Lebanon Municipal Airport
    (Lat. 36[deg]11'25'' N, long. 86[deg]18'56'' W)
Murfreesboro Municipal Airport
    (Lat. 35[deg]52'43'' N, long. 86[deg]22'39'' W)
John C. Tune Airport
    (Lat. 36[deg]10'59'' N, long. 86[deg]53'11'' W)
Vanderbilt University Medical Center Hospital Point In Space 
Coordinates
    (Lat. 36[deg]08'30'' N, long. 86[deg]48'6'' W)

    That airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface 
within a 15 mile radius of Nashville International Airport, and 
within a 11.5-mile radius of Smyrna Airport, and within a 7-mile 
radius of Sumner County Regional Airport, and within a 10-mile 
radius of Lebanon Municipal Airport, and within a 9-mile radius of 
Murfreesboro Municipal Airport, and within an 8.6-mile radius of 
John C. Tune Airport, and that airspace within a 6-mile radius of 
the Point In Space serving Vanderbilt University Medical Center 
Hospital.

    Issued in College Park, Georgia, on November 12, 2020.
Matthew N. Cathcart,
Manager, Airspace & Procedures Team North, Eastern Service Center, Air 
Traffic Organization.
[FR Doc. 2020-25400 Filed 11-17-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-13-P