2018-16865. Proposed Amendment of Class E Airspace, Knoxville, TN; and Establishment of Class E Airspace, Madisonville, TN

AGENCY:

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION:

Supplemental notice of proposed rulemaking (SNPRM).

SUMMARY:

This supplemental notice of proposed rulemaking proposes to move Monroe County Airport, Madisonville, TN, associated with the Knoxville, TN, McGhee-Tyson Airport, and establish it as stand-alone airspace with its own designation. This proposal is necessary to further the safety and management of Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) operations at this airport.

DATES:

Comments must be received on or before September 10, 2018.

ADDRESSES:

Send comments on this proposal to: U.S. Department of Transportation, Docket Operations, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Bldg. Ground Floor, Rm. W12-140, Washington, DC 20590; Telephone: [phone], or [phone]. You must identify the Docket No. FAA-2017-1214; Airspace Docket No. 17-ASO-24, at the beginning of your comments. You may also submit and review received comments through the internet at http://www.regulations.gov. You may review the public docket containing the proposal, any comments received, and any final disposition in person in the Dockets Office between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, except federal holidays.

FAA Order 7400.11B, Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, and subsequent amendments can be viewed on line at http://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 7400.11B at NARA, call [phone], or go to https://www.archives.gov/​federal-register/​cfr/​ibr-locations.html.

FAA Order 7400.11, Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, is published yearly and effective on September 15.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

John Fornito, Operations Support Group, Eastern Service Center, Federal Aviation Administration, 1701 Columbia Avenue, College Park, GA 30337; telephone [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

History

The FAA published a NPRM for Docket No. FAA-2017-1214 in the Federal Register (83 FR 19474; May 3, 2018) to amend Class E airspace in Knoxville, TN, by amending McGhee-Tyson Airport, Knoxville Downtown Island Airport, and University of Tennessee Medical Center Heliport. The comment period closed June 18, 2018. No comments were received. Subsequent to publication, the FAA determined that Monroe County Airport, Madisonville, TN, which is listed in the legal description for McGhee-Tyson Airport, should be removed from the Knoxville, TN, airspace designation for the Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface, and be established under its own designation of Madisonville, TN. The FAA seeks comments on this SNPRM.

Comments Invited

Interested persons are invited to comment on this rule 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. You may also submit comments through the internet at http://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 Docket No. FAA-2017-1214; Airspace Docket No. 17-ASO-24.” 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 SNPRMs

An electronic copy of this document may be downloaded through the internet at http://www.regulations.gov. Recently published rulemaking documents can also be accessed through the FAA's web page at http://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 7400.11B, Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, dated August 3, 2017, and effective September 15, 2017. FAA Order 7400.11B is publicly available as listed in the ADDRESSES section of this document. FAA Order 7400.11B lists Class A, B, C, D, and E airspace areas, air traffic service routes, and reporting points.

The Supplemental Proposal

The FAA is considering an amendment to Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR) part 71 by removing the Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet or more above the surface within a 6.5-mile radius of Monroe County Airport, Knoxville, TN, from the Knoxville, TN, designation associated with McGhee-Tyson Airport. Airspace would then be established for Monroe County Airport under its own designation of Madisonville, TN, within an 8.5-mile radius of the airport.

This change does not affect the other proposed amendments as published in the NPRM.

Class E airspace designations are published in Paragraph 6005 of FAA Order 7400.11B, dated August 3, 2017, and effective September 15, 2017, 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.

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 so 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

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.

§ 71.1

[Amended]

2. The incorporation by reference in 14 CFR 71.1 of Federal Aviation Administration Order 7400.11B, Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, dated August 3, 2017, and effective September 15, 2017, is amended as follows:

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

* * * * *

ASO TN E5 Knoxville, TN [Amended]

McGhee-Tyson Airport, TN

(Lat. 35°48′34″ N, long. 83°59′43″ W)

Gatlinburg-Pigeon Forge Airport, TN

(Lat. 35°51′28″ N, long. 83°31′43″ W)

Knoxville Downtown Island Airport, TN

(Lat. 35°57′50″ N, long. 83°52′25″ W)

That airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface within a 15.4-mile radius of McGhee-Tyson Airport, and within a 13-mile radius of Gatlinburg-Pigeon Forge Airport, and from the 080° bearing from Gatlinburg-Pigeon Forge Airport clockwise to the 210° bearing extending from the 13-mile radius southeast to the 33-mile radius centered on Gatlinburg-Pigeon Forge Airport, and within an 8-mile radius of Knoxville Downtown Island Airport.

ASO TN E5 Madisonville, TN [New]

Monroe County Airport, TN,

(Lat. 35°32′43″ N, long. 84°22′49″ W)

That airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface within an 8.5-mile radius of Monroe County Airport.

Issued in College Park, Georgia, on July 30, 2018.

Ryan W. Almasy,

Manager, Operations Support Group, Eastern Service Center, Air Traffic Organization.