[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 249 (Tuesday, December 29, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 85846-85847]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-28745]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

[Docket No. FAA-2020-1199; Airspace Docket No. 20-AEA-21]


Notice of Availability of Written Re-Evaluation and Record of 
Decision; New York/New Jersey/Philadelphia Metropolitan Area Airspace 
Redesign

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announces the 
availability of a Written Re-evaluation and Record of Decision (WR/ROD) 
for the New York/New Jersey/Philadelphia (NY/NJ/PHL) Metropolitan Area 
Airspace Redesign project. This 2020 WR/ROD follows the issuance of a 
Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the project, issued in 
July 2007, and a subsequent ROD (September 2007) that approved the 
Integrated Airspace Alternative with Integrated Control Complex for 
implementation. The September 2007 ROD was followed by a corrected ROD 
(October 2007), as well as a WR/ROD (July 2008) that re-affirmed the 
original decision in light of new schedule limits at John F. Kennedy 
International Airport (JFK) and Newark Liberty International Airport 
(EWR).

DATES: The FAA's WR/ROD for the NY/NJ/PHL Metropolitan Airspace 
Redesign is effective December 22, 2020.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For additional information, contact 
Matthew Cathcart, Acting Manager, Operations Support Group, in writing 
to Federal Aviation Administration, Eastern Service Center, Operations 
Support Group, AJV-E2, FAA Southern Regional Office, P.O. Box 20636, 
Atlanta, GA 30320; by telephone, at (404) 305-5624; or, by electronic 
mail, at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The purpose of the NY/NJ/PHL Metropolitan 
Area Airspace Redesign project was to increase the efficiency and 
reliability of the airspace structure and the Air Traffic Control (ATC) 
system, thereby accommodating growth while enhancing safety and 
reducing delays in air travel for the NY/NJ/PHL Metropolitan Area. The 
Airspace Redesign project was intended to modernize the structure of 
the NY/NJ/PHL air traffic environment while laying a foundation for 
achieving the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) in an 
environmentally responsible manner.
    While four stages of implementation were originally planned, FAA 
paused the project in 2012 in light of air transportation system 
changes in the intervening years. While several beneficial elements of 
the project were implemented, the National Airspace System evolved 
significantly between the 2007 EIS and 2012. New NextGen capabilities, 
such as Time Based Metering and advanced satellite based navigation 
procedures, and increasing consolidation of the airline industry, 
changes in system use, and evolving traffic projections resulted in new 
and different airspace and procedures requirements. As a result, the 
FAA suspended the Airspace Redesign project in May 2013. The FAA has 
determined it is appropriate to end implementation and has prepared the 
aforementioned December 2020 WR/ROD. The WR/ROD may be accessed on the 
FAA's public website: https://

[[Page 85847]]

www.faa.gov/air_traffic/nas/nynjphl_redesign/documentation/.
    This Notice of Availability of the December 2020 WR/ROD also serves 
as the response to Section 560 of the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018, 
which imposed the following requirement:
    Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
Administrator shall develop and publish in the Federal Register a work 
plan for the New York/New Jersey/Philadelphia Metropolitan Area 
Airspace Project.
    As discussed above, work on the NY/NJ/PHL Metropolitan Area 
Airspace Redesign project was suspended in May 2013, and the FAA has 
determined it is appropriate to end implementation. There is no work 
plan for the project beyond the preparation of the December 2020 WR/ROD 
and this Notice.

    Issued in Atlanta, Georgia, on December 22, 2020.
Ryan W. Almasy,
Director (Acting), Eastern Service Center, Mission Support Services, 
Air Traffic Organization, Federal Aviation Administration.
[FR Doc. 2020-28745 Filed 12-28-20; 8:45 am]
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