2021-16831. Modification of Class E Airspace; Gulkana, AK

AGENCY:

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION:

Final rule.

SUMMARY:

This action modifies the Class E airspace, designated as a surface area at Gulkana Airport, Gulkana, AK. This action also modifies the Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface. The NPRM for this action proposed a modification to the Class E airspace extending upward from 1,200 feet above the surface, however, the proposed change has been removed from the Final Rule. Additionally, this action removes the Gulkana VORTAC and the Glenallen NDB from the Class E2 text header and airspace description. Further, this action removes the Gulkana VOR/DME from the Class E5 text header and airspace description. Lastly, this action implements administrative updates to the Class E2 and E5 text headers and the Class E2 airspace description. The airspace is designed to support instrument flight rules (IFR) operations at the airport.

DATES:

Effective 0901 UTC, December 2, 2021. The Director of the Federal Register approves this incorporation by reference action under 1 CFR part 51, subject to the annual revision of FAA Order 7400.11 and publication of conforming amendments.

ADDRESSES:

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 Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20591; telephone: [phone]. 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 [e-mail] 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 [phone].

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 modifies the Class E airspace at Gulkana Airport, Gulkana, AK, to ensure the safety and management of IFR operations at the airport.

History

The FAA published a notice of proposed rulemaking in the Federal Register (86 FR 22366; April 28, 2021) for Docket No. FAA-2021-0275 to modify the Class E airspace at Gulkana Airport, Gulkana, AK. Interested parties were invited to participate in this rulemaking effort by submitting written comments on the proposal to the FAA. No comments were received.

After the publication of the NRPM, the FAA identified a change to the RNAV (GPS) RWY 15 approach, affecting the Class E airspace extending upward from 1,200 feet above the surface. As a result, the FAA is removing the proposed change to this Class E airspace area from the Final Rule. The airspace will remain within a 76-mile radius of Gulkana Airport.

Class E2 and Class E5 airspace designations are published in paragraphs 6002 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 E airspace designation listed in this document will be published subsequently in the Order.

Availability and Summary of Documents for Incorporation by Reference

This document amends 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 Rule

This amendment to 14 CFR part 71 modifies the Class E airspace, designated as a surface area, at Gulkana Airport, Gulkana, AK. The areas extending north and south of the 4-mile radius are removed, the areas are no longer required to contain IFR aircraft descending below 1,000 feet above the surface. This action also removes the following verbiage from this airspace area “to and including 4,100 feet MSL”. The ceiling of this airspace area is now aligned to the floor of the overlying controlled airspace, which begins at 700 feet above the surface.

This action also modifies the Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface. This airspace is designed to contain IFR departures to 1,200 feet above the surface and IFR arrivals descending below 1,500 feet above the surface. To properly contain IFR aircraft arriving and departing from the airport, the circular radius of the airspace is reduced from 6.5 miles to 5 miles. The area extending south of the 5-mile radius is enlarged to contain aircraft holding for the RNAV (GPS) RWY 33R approach. The area extending north of the 5-mile radius is also modified slightly; this modification accounts for using the airport as the sole reference for the airspace's description.

Additionally, this action removes the Gulkana VORTAC and the Glenallen NDB from the Class E2 text header and airspace description. This action also removes the Gulkana VOR/DME from the Class E5 text header and airspace description. The navigational aids (NAVAID) are not needed to define the airspace and removal of the NAVAIDs simplifies the airspaces' descriptions.

Lastly, the action implements administrative updates to the airspaces' text headers and airspace descriptions. On the second line of the Class E5 text header, the redundant use of Gulkana has been removed. On the third line of the Class E2 and E5 text headers, the geographic coordinates are updated to “lat. 62°09′16″ N, long. 145°27′19″ W” In the last sentence of the Class E2 airspace description, the term “Airport/Facility Directory” is updated to “Chart Supplement.”

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

The FAA has determined that this action qualifies for categorical exclusion under the National Environmental Policy Act in accordance with FAA Order 1050.1F, “Environmental Impacts: Policies and Procedures,” paragraph 5-6.5a. This airspace action is not expected to cause any potentially significant environmental impacts, and no extraordinary circumstances exist that warrant the preparation of an environmental assessment.

List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 71

• Airspace
• Incorporation by reference
• Navigation (air)

Adoption of the Amendment

In consideration of the foregoing, the Federal Aviation Administration amends 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

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.

§ 71.1

[Amended]

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 6002 Class E Airspace Areas Designated as Surface Areas.

* * * * *

AAL AK E2 Gulkana, AK [Amended]

Gulkana Airport, AK

(Lat. 62°09′16″ N, long. 145°27′19″ W)

That airspace extending upward from the surface within a 4-mile radius of the airport. This Class E airspace area is effective during specific dates and times established in advance by Notice to Airmen. The effective date and time 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.

* * * * *

AAL AK E5 Gulkana, AK [Amended]

Gulkana Airport, AK

(Lat. 62°09′16″ N, long. 145°27′19″ W)

That airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface within a 5-mile radius of the airport, and within 5 miles each side of the 169° bearing from the airport, extending from the 5-mile radius to 24 miles south of the airport, and within 4 miles each side of the 351° bearing from the airport, extending from the 5-mile radius to 12.5 miles north of the airport; and that airspace extending upward from 1,200 feet above the surface within a 67-mile radius of the airport.

Issued in Des Moines, Washington, on August 2, 2021.

B.G. Chew,

Acting Group Manager, Operations Support Group, Western Service Center.