2016-18773. Proposed Amendment of Class E Airspace for the Following Wisconsin Towns; Antigo, WI; Ashland, WI; Black River Falls, WI; Cable Union, WI; Cumberland, WI; Eagle River, WI; Hayward, WI; and Wausau, WI, and Proposed Revocation of Class E ...

AGENCY:

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION:

Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).

SUMMARY:

This action proposes to modify Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface at Langlade County Airport, Antigo, WI; John F. Kennedy Memorial Airport, Ashland, WI; Black River Falls Area Airport, Black River Falls, WI; Cable Union Airport, Cable Union, WI; Cumberland Municipal Airport, Cumberland, WI; Eagle River Union Airport, Eagle River, WI; Sawyer County Airport, Hayward, WI; and Wausau Downtown Airport, Wausau, WI. Decommissioning of non-directional radio beacon (NDB), cancellation of NDB approaches, and implementation of area navigation (RNAV) procedures have made this action necessary for the safety and management of Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) operations at the above airports. This action also proposes to remove Class E surface area airspace at Wausau Municipal Airport (Wausau Downtown Airport), Wausau, WI, as a review has determined that the airport no longer meets the requirements for this airspace. Additionally, the geographic coordinates at Langlade County Airport, John F. Kennedy Memorial Airport, Cumberland Municipal Airport, Eagle River Union Airport, and Wausau Downtown Airport (formerly Wausau Municipal Airport) would be adjusted to coincide with the FAAs aeronautical database.

DATES:

Comments must be received on or before September 26, 2016.

ADDRESSES:

Send comments on this proposal to the U.S. Department of Transportation, Docket Operations, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590; telephone [phone], or 1-800-647-5527. You must identify FAA Docket No. FAA-2016-8557; Airspace Docket No. 16-AGL-17, at the beginning of your comments. You may also submit 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 7400.9Z, Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, and subsequent amendments can be viewed online 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 7400.9Z at NARA, call 202-741-6030, or go to http://www.archives.gov/​federal_​register/​code_​of_​federal-regulations/​ibr_​locations.html.

FAA Order 7400.9, Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, is published yearly and effective on September 15.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Jeffrey Claypool, Federal Aviation Administration, Operations Support Group, Central Service Center, 10101 Hillwood Parkway, Fort Worth, TX, 76177; 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 would amend Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface at Langlade County Airport, Antigo, WI; John F. Kennedy Memorial Airport, Ashland, WI; Black River Falls Area Airport, Black River Falls, WI; Cable Union Airport, Cable Union, WI; Cumberland Municipal Airport, Cumberland, WI; Eagle River Union Airport, Eagle River, WI; Sawyer County Airport, Hayward, WI; and Wausau Downtown Airport, Wausau, WI; and remove Class E surface area airspace at Wausau Downtown Airport (formerly Wausau Municipal Airport), Wausau, WI.

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. 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 Docket No. FAA-2016-8557/Airspace Docket No. 16-AGL-17.” The postcard will be date/time stamped and returned to the commenter.

Availability of NPRMs

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.regulations.gov.

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 Federal Aviation Administration, Air Traffic Organization, Central Service Center, Operations Support Group, 10101 Hillwood Parkway, Fort Worth, TX, 76177.

Availability and Summary of Documents Proposed for Incorporation by Reference

This document proposes to amend FAA Order 7400.9Z, Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, dated August 6, 2015, and effective September 15, 2015. FAA Order 7400.9Z is publicly available as listed in the ADDRESSES section of this document. FAA Order 7400.9Z 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 Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR) Part 71 by modifying Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface:

Within a 6.5-mile radius of Langlade County Airport, Antigo, WI, and updating the geographic coordinates of the airport to coincide with the FAA's aeronautical database;

Within a 7.0-mile radius of John F. Kennedy Memorial Airport, Ashland, WI, with an extension southwest of the airport from the 7.0-mile radius to 8.2 miles, and updating the geographic coordinates of the airport to coincide with the FAA's aeronautical database;

Within a 7.1-mile radius of Black River Falls Area Airport, Black River Falls, WI, with an extension southwest of the airport from the 7.1-mile radius to 11.7 miles, with an extension northeast of the airport from the 7.1-mile radius to 11.4 miles;

Within a 6.9-mile radius of Cable Union Airport, Cable Union, WI;

Within a 6.4-mile radius of Cumberland Municipal Airport, Cumberland, WI, with extensions from the 6.4-mile radius to 10.2 miles west and east; and updating the geographic coordinates of the airport to coincide with the FAA's aeronautical database;

Within a 6.5-mile radius of Eagle River Union Airport, Eagle River, WI, with an extension southwest of the airport from the 6.5-mile radius to 9.2 miles, and updating the geographic coordinates of the airport to coincide with the FAA's aeronautical database;

Within a 6.6-mile radius of Sawyer County Airport, Hayward, WI, with an extension northeast of the airport from the 6.6-mile radius to 8.5 miles;

And within a 6.8-mile radius of Wausau Downtown Airport, Wausau, WI, and updating the name and geographic coordinates of the airport to coincide with the FAA's aeronautical database.

The Class E airspace designated as a surface area at Wausau Municipal Airport, Wausau, WI, would be removed as the airport no longer meets the requirements for this airspace.

Airspace reconfiguration is necessary due to the decommissioning of NDBs, cancellation of NDB approaches, and implementation of RNAV procedures at the above airports. Controlled airspace is necessary for the safety and management of the standard instrument approach procedures for IFR operations at the airports.

Class E airspace designations are published in paragraphs 6002 and 6005, respectively, of FAA Order 7400.9Z, dated August 6, 2015, and effective September 15, 2015, which is incorporated by reference in 14 CFR 71.1. The Class E airspace designations listed in this document will be published subsequently in the Order.

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

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 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 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 7400.9Z, Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, dated August 6, 2015, and effective September 15, 2015, is amended as follows:

Paragraph 6002 Class E Airspace Designated as Surface Areas.

* * * * *

AGL WI E2 Wausau, WI [Removed]

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

* * * * *

AGL WI E5 Antigo, WI [Amended]

Langlade County Airport, WI

(Lat. 45°09′14″ N., long. 89°06′38″ W.)

That airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface within a 6.5-mile radius of Langlade County Airport.

AGL WI E5 Ashland, WI [Amended]

John F. Kennedy Memorial Airport, WI

(Lat. 46°32′55″ N., long. 90°55′08″ W.)

That airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface within a 7.0-mile radius of John F. Kennedy Memorial Airport, and within 2.9 miles each side of the 201° bearing from the airport extending from the 7.0-mile radius to 8.2 miles southwest of the airport.

* * * * *

AGL WI E5 Black River Falls, WI [Amended]

Black River Falls Area Airport

(Lat. 44°15′03″ N., long. 90°51′19″ W.)

That airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface within a 7.1-mile radius of Black River Falls Area Airport, and within 2 miles each side of the 081° bearing from the airport extending from the 7.1-mile radius to 11.4 miles east of the airport, and within 2 miles each side of the 260° bearing from the airport extending from the 7.1-mile radius to 11.7 miles west of the airport.

* * * * *

AGL WI E5 Cable Union, WI [Amended]

Cable Union Airport, WI

(Lat. 46°11′42″ N., long. 91°14′54″ W.)

That airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface within a 6.9-mile radius of Cable Union Airport.

* * * * *

AGL WI E5 Cumberland, WI [Amended]

Cumberland Municipal Airport, WI

(Lat. 45°30′22″ N., long. 91°58′51″ W.)

That airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface within a 6.4-mile radius of Cumberland Municipal Airport, and within 2 miles each side of the 091° bearing from the airport extending from the 6.4-mile radius to 10.2 miles east of the airport, and within 2 miles each side of the 270° bearing from the airport extending from the 6.4-mile radius to 10.2 miles west of the airport.

* * * * *

AGL WI E5 Eagle River, WI [Amended]

Eagle River Union Airport, WI

(Lat. 45°55′56″ N., long. 89°16′06″ W.)

That airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface within a 6.5-mile radius of Eagle River Union Airport, and within 2 miles each side of the 225° bearing from the airport extending from the 6.5-mile radius to 9.2 miles southwest of the airport.

* * * * *

AGL WI E5 Hayward, WI [Amended]

Sawyer County Airport, WI

(Lat. 46°01′31″ N., long. 91°26′39″ W.)

That airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface within a 6.6-mile radius of Sawyer County Airport, and within 2 miles each side of the 025° bearing from the airport extending from the 6.6-mile radius to 8.5 miles northeast of the airport.

* * * * *

AGL WI E5 Wausau, WI [Amended]

Wausau Downtown Airport, WI

(Lat. 44°55′35″ N., long. 89°37′37″ W.)

That airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface within a 6.8-mile radius of Wausau Downtown Airport.

Issued in Fort Worth, Texas, on July 29, 2016.

Walter Tweedy,

Acting Manager, Operations Support Group, ATO Central Service Center.