02-1509. Proposed Establishment of Class D and Class E4 Airspace; St. Augustine, FL

AGENCY:

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION:

Notice of proposed rulemaking.

SUMMARY:

This notice proposes to establish Class D and Class E4 airspace at St. Augustine, FL. A federal contract tower with a weather reporting system is being constructed at the St. Augustine Airport. Therefore, the airport will meet the criteria for establishment of Class D and Class E4 airspace. Class D surface area airspace and Class E4 airspace designated as an extension to Class D airspace is required when the control tower is open to contain existing Standard Instrument Approach Procedures (SIAPs) and other Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) operations at the airport. This action would establish Class D airspace extending upward from the surface to and including 2,500 feet MSL within a 4-mile radius of the St. Augustine Airport and Class E4 airspace extensions that are 4.8 miles wide and extend 7 miles northwest and southeast of the airport.

DATES:

Comments must be received on or before February 21, 2002.

ADDRESSES:

Send comments on the proposal in triplicate to: Federal Aviation Administration, Docket No. 02-ASO-1, Manager, Airspace Branch, ASO-520, PO Box 20636, Atlanta, Georgia 30320.

The official docket may be examined in the Office of the Regional Counsel for Southern Region, Room 550, 1701 Columbia Avenue, College Park, Georgia 30337, telephone [phone].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Walter R. Cochran, Manager, Airspace Branch, Air Traffic Division, Federal Aviation Administration, PO Box 20636, Atlanta, Georgia 30320; telephone [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

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 the airspace docket number and be submitted in triplicate to the address listed above. Commenters 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 Airspace Docket No. 02-ASO-1.” 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. All comments submitted will be available for examination in the Office of the Regional Counsel for Southern Region, Room 550, 1701 Columbia Avenue, College Park, Georgia 30337, both before and after the closing date for comments. A report summarizing each substantive public contact with FAA personnel concerned with the rulemaking will be filed in the docket.

Availability of NPRMs

Any person may obtain a copy of this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) by submitting a request to the Federal Aviation Administration, Manager, Airspace Branch, ASO-520, Air Traffic Division, PO Box 20636, Atlanta, Georgia 30320. Communications must identify the notice number of this NPRM. Persons interested in being placed on a mailing list for future NPRMs should also request a copy of Advisory Circular No. 11-2A which describes the application procedure.

The Proposal

The FAA is considering an amendment to part 71 of the Federal Aviation Regulations (14 CFR part 71) to establish Class D airspace and Class E4 airspace at St. Augustine, FL. Class D airspace designations for airspace areas extending upward from the surface of the earth and Class E airspace designations for airspace areas designated as an extension to a Class D airspace area are published in Paragraphs 5000 and 6004 respectively, of FAA Order 7400.9J, dated August 31, 2001, and effective September 16, 2001, which is incorporated by reference in 14 CFR 71.1. The Class D and Class E airspace designations listed in this document would be published subsequently in the Order.

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 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.

List 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, CLASS B, CLASS C, CLASS D, AND CLASS E AIRSPACE AREAS; AIRWAYS; ROUTES; AND REPORTING POINTS

1. The authority citation for Part 71 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 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 17.1 of Federal Aviation Administration Order 7400.9J, Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, dated August 31, 2001, and effective September 16, 2001, is amended as follows:

Paragraph 5000 Class D Airspace

* * * * *

ASO FL D St. Augustine, FL [New]

St. Augustine Airport, FL

(Lat. 29°57′33″N, long. 81°20′23″W)

That airspace extending upward from the surface to and including 2,500 feet MSL within a 4-mile radius of St. Augustine Airport. This Class D airspace area is effective during the specific days and times established in advance by a Notice to Airmen. The effective days and times will thereafter be continuously published in the Airport/Facility Directory.

* * * * *

Paragraph 6004 Class E4 Airspace Areas Designated as an Extension to a Class D Airspace Area

* * * * *

ASO FL E4 St. Augustine, FL [New]

St. Augustine Airport, FL

(Lat. 29°57′33″N, long. 81°20′23″W)

St. Augustine VOR/DME, FL

(Lat. 29°57′29″N, long. 81°20′18″W)

That airspace extending upward from the surface within 2.4 miles each side of the St. Augustine VOR/DME 127° and 313° radials, extending from the 4-mile radius to 7 miles northwest and southeast of the VOR/DME. This Class E4 airspace area is effective during the specific days and times established in advance by a Notice to Airmen. The effective days and times will thereafter be continuously published in the Airport/Facility Directory.

* * * * *

Issued in College Park, Georgia, on January 14, 2002.

Wade T. Carpenter,

Acting Manager, Air Traffic Division, Southern Region.