[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 241 (Friday, December 16, 2022)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 77044-77046]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-27250]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 71

[Docket No. FAA-2022-1455; Airspace Docket No. 21-AWP-42]
RIN 2120-AA66


Proposed Amendment of Class D and E Airspace; Lemoore Naval Air 
Station (NAS) (Reeves Field), CA

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).

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SUMMARY: This action proposes to modify the Class D and E surface 
airspace at the airport, remove the Class E airspace designated as an 
extension to a Class D or E surface area, remove the Class E airspace 
extending from 1,200 feet above the surface, modify the Class E 
airspace extending from 700 feet above the surface of the earth, and it 
will also propose several administrative changes to update the 
airport's legal description. This action would support the safety and 
management of instrument flight rules (IFR) and visual flight rules 
(VFR) operations at the airport.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before January 30, 2023.

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 Docket No. FAA-
2022-1455; Airspace Docket No. 21-AWP-42, at the beginning of your 
comments. You may also submit comments through the internet at 
www.regulations.gov.
    FAA Order JO 7400.11G, Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, 
and subsequent amendments can be viewed online at 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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Raphell P. Taylor, Federal Aviation 
Administration, Western Service Center, Operations Support Group, 2200 
S 216th Street, Des Moines, WA 98198; telephone (405) 666-1176.

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 (U.S.C.). 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 and E airspace at Lemoore NAS, CA, 
to support the safety and management of IFR and VFR 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-2022-1455; 
Airspace Docket No. 21-AWP-42.'' 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

[[Page 77045]]

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 www.regultions.gov. Recently published rulemaking documents 
can also be accessed through the FAA's web page at 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 JO 7400.11G, Airspace 
Designations and Reporting Points, dated August 19, 2022, and effective 
September 15, 2022. FAA Order JO 7400.11G is publicly available as 
listed in the ADDRESSES section of this document. FAA Order JO 7400.11G 
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 CFR part 71 that 
would modify the Class D and E surface areas, remove the Class E 
airspace area designated as an extension to a Class D or Class E 
surface area, remove the Class E airspace extending upward from 1,200 
feet above the surface, and modify the Class E airspace extending 
upward from 700 feet above the surface at Lemoore NAS.
    The radius of the Class D surface airspace should be increased to 
5.4 miles (previously 5.2 miles), which would more appropriately 
contain IFR departure operations while between the surface and the base 
of adjacent controlled airspace.
    The Class E2 airspace should be modified to be coincident with the 
Class D airspace legal description.
    The Class E4 airspace at the airport should be removed. The 
proposed lateral boundaries of the Class D and E2 surface areas are 
sufficient to contain IFR aircraft on instrument approaches when less 
than 1,000 feet above the surface.
    The north and southeast extensions to the Class E5 airspace 
extending upward from 700 feet above the surface are no longer needed 
and should be removed. A Class E5 area extending upward from 700 feet 
above the surface within a 7.9-mile radius airspace area about the 
airport is sufficient to contain IFR arrivals descending below 1,500 
feet above the surface and IFR departures to 1,200 feet above the 
surface.
    The Class E5 airspace extending upward from 1,200 feet above the 
surface at the airport should be removed as the area is already 
contained within the Sacramento Class E domestic en route airspace, and 
duplication is not necessary.
    Additionally, the FAA proposes administrative modifications to the 
airport's legal descriptions. The term ``NAS'' is not associated with 
the correct city information in the first line of the text header in 
the Class D and E2 legal descriptions, and it should be removed. The 
terms ``Notice to Airmen'' and ``Airport/Facility Directory'' in the 
Class D and E2 airspace descriptions should be updated to read ``Notice 
to Air Missions'' and ``Chart Supplement,'' respectively, to match the 
FAA's current nomenclature. The airport name in the second line of the 
legal description text headers should be corrected. The name 
``LeMoore'' should be replaced with ``Lemoore,'' to more accurately 
describe the airport. The third line of the text header currently 
references the Lemoore NAS Tactical Air Navigation (TACAN) navigational 
aid, but should list the airport's geographic coordinates instead, as 
it simplifies the airspace's legal description. This line should read 
``(lat. 36[deg]19'59'' N, long. 119[deg]57'08'' W).'' and the reference 
to the Lemoore NAS TACAN should be removed, as it is no longer needed 
to describe the airspace.
    Class D, E2, E4, and E5 airspace designations are published in 
paragraphs 5000, 6002, 6004, and 6005, respectively, of FAA Order JO 
7400.11G, dated August 19, 2022, and effective September 15, 2022, 
which is incorporated by reference in 14 CFR 71.1. The Class D and 
Class E airspace designations listed in this document will be published 
subsequently in FAA Order JO 7400.11, which is published yearly and 
becomes effective on September 15. FAA Order JO 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 (E.O.) 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 FAA 
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 JO 
7400.11G, Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, dated August 19, 
2022, and effective September 15, 20122 is amended as follows:

Paragraph 5000 Class D Airspace.

* * * * *

AWP CA D Lemoore, CA [Amended]

Lemoore NAS (Reeves Field), CA
    (Lat. 36[deg]19'59'' N, long. 119[deg]57'08'' W)


[[Page 77046]]


    That airspace extending upward from the surface to and including 
2,700 feet MSL within a 5.4-mile radius of the airport. This Class D 
airspace area is effective during the specific dates and times 
established in advance by a Notice to Air Missions. The effective 
date and time will thereafter be continuously published in the Chart 
Supplement.
* * * * *

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

* * * * *

AWP CA E2 Lemoore, CA [Amended]

Lemoore NAS (Reeves Field), CA
    (Lat. 36[deg]19'59'' N, long. 119[deg]57'08'' W)

    That airspace extending upward from the surface within a 5.4-
mile radius of the airport. This Class E airspace area is effective 
during the specific dates and times established in advance by a 
Notice to Air Missions. 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.

* * * * *

AWP CA E4 Lemoore NAS, CA [Removed]

Lemoore NAS (Reeves Field), CA
    (Lat. 36[deg]19'59'' N, long. 119[deg]57'08'' W)

Lemoore TACAN
    (Lat. 36[deg]20'39'' N, long. 119[deg]57'59'' W)

    That airspace extending upward from the surface within 1.8 miles 
each side of the Lemoore TACAN 335[deg] and 357[deg] radials, 
extending from the 5.2-mile radius of Lemoore NAS (Reeves Field) to 
7 miles northwest and north of the TACAN, and within 1.8 miles each 
side of the Lemoore TACAN 155[deg] radial, extending from the 5.2-
mile radius to 7 miles southeast of the TACAN.
* * * * *

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

* * * * *

AWP CA E5 Lemoore, CA [Amended]

Lemoore NAS (Reeves Field), CA
    (Lat. 36[deg]19'59'' N, long. 119[deg]57'08'' W)

    That airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface 
within a 7.9-mile radius of the airport.
* * * * *

    Issued in Des Moines, Washington, on December 8, 2022.
B.G. Chew,
Group Manager, Operations Support Group, Western Service Center.
[FR Doc. 2022-27250 Filed 12-15-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-13-P