34368 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 103 / Friday, May 26, 2000 / Rules and Regulations

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 91

National Parks Air Tour Management

AGENCY: Federal Aviation

Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of statutory requirement.

SUMMARY: The FAA publishes this

document to inform commercial air tour

operators of recent legislation that

affects them. The National Parks Air

Tour Management act of 2000, part of

Public Law 106–181, was signed into

law on April 5, 2000. The Act requires

operators who conduct commercial air

tours under Part 92 over national parks,

tribal lands within such parks, or tribal

lands abutting such parks to apply to

the FAA to obtain a certificate under

Part 119, Part 121, or Part 135 to

continue these commercial air tour

operators. Excluded from this law are

parks in Alaska and Grand Canyon

national Park and Rocky Mountain

National Park. The FAA publishes this

document to assist commercial air tour

operators, who conduct some air torus

under Part 91, in meeting the

requirements of the public law.

DATES: By July 5, 2000, commercial air

tour operators conducting air tours over

national parks or tribal lands under Part

91 must apply to the FAA for

certification as an air carrier or

commercial operator under Part 119

unless excepted.

ADDRESSES: Part 92 operators

conducting commercial air tours must

apply for certification to the Flight

Standards District Office (FSD) which is

located in the geographic area of the

operator’s principal business office.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Howard Nesbitt, Flight Standards

Service (AFS–200), Federal Aviation

Administration, Seventh and Maryland

Streets, SW, Washington, DC 20591;

Telephone: (202) 493–4981. Readers

who wish more information on national

park unit should visit the National Park

Service’s web at http://nps.gov/ or call

Howie Thompson, National Park

Service at (303) 969–2461.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

There are currently 379 units of the

National Park System in the United

States. The National Park System is

defined as any area of land and water

administered by the Secretary of the

Interior through the National Park

Service for park, monument, historic,

parkway, recreational, or other

purposes. For purposes of the National

Parks Air Tour Management Act of

2000, the term ‘‘national park’’ includes

all of these types, but does not include

other lands under National Park Service

control that are not specifically

designated as units of the National Park

System.

In May 1997 the Secretaries of Interior

and Transportation established the

National Parks Overflights Working

Group (NPOWG) to ‘‘define the process

to reduce or prevent the adverse effects

of commercial sightseeing flight over

units of the national park system.’’ The

NPOWG met from May 1997 until

November 1997 and produced a

recommendation for rulemaking for the

FAA and National Park Service (NPS) to

use in drafting a proposed regulation.

Subsequently, the Congress accepted

the recommendation that it enact

legislation based on the NPOWG’s

consensus product. The legislation

requires that the two agencies work in

a cooperative effort to protect the parks.

Operators Conducting Commercial Air

Tour Operation Under Part 91

Public Law 106–181, commonly

known as the FAA Reauthorization Act,

was signed into law on April 5, 2000.

Section 803(a) of the FAA

Reauthorization Act added Section

40128 to Title 49 of the United States

Code. Section 40128(a)(4) of Title 49 of

the U.S. Code requires that air tour

operators conducting air tour operations

under Part 91 (14 CFR Part 91) apply for

operating authority under Parts 119,

121, or 135 (14 CFR Parts 119, 121, 135)

within 90 days after date of enactment.

However, paragraph (a)(3) allows

commercial air tour operators to

continue operating over parks under

Park 91 if such activity is permitted

under Part 119, the operator secures a

letter of agreement from the

Administrator and the national park

superintendent for that particular park,

and the total number of operations

under this exception is limited to not

more than 5 flights in any 30-day

period. Note that this exception limits

the ‘‘total number of operations * * * to

not more than 5 flights in any 30-day

period over a particular park’’. Since

§ 119.1(e)(2) of Title 14 of the Code of

Federal Regulations, which allows

sightseeing flights within a 25-mile

radius of an airport to be conducted

under Part 91, is still in effect, it would

apply to these operators. Operators will

be allowed to continue to operate over

parks and tribal lands if the conditions

of 49 U.S.C. Section 40128(a)(3) are met.

Commercial air tour operators who

conduct air tour flights under Part 91

must apply for certification under Part

119, 121, or 135 unless they wish to

continue to operate in compliance with

requirements of (a)(3).

The FAA understands that an

operator will not be able to obtain a

certificate in 90 days Operators should

contact their local FSDO for information

on certification as an air carrier or

commercial operator, in addition to

applying for a letter of agreement to

operate in the interim. Application may

be initiated by phone or facsimile.

Next Actions

The FAA realizes that additional

regulations will be needed to establish

the altitude by which a commercial air

tour operation will be defined. (See 49

U.S.C. 40128(f)(4)(A).) Additional

rulemaking will be necessary to

establish the competitive bidding

process for limited capacity parks. (See

49 U.S.C. § 40128(a)(1)(B).) Congress

required the Administrator, in

cooperation with the Director of the

NPS, to consider several factors in

making selections under a competitive

bidding process, including quiet

technology issues.

Additional rulemaking will also

address interim operating authority for

commercial air tour operators

conducting air tour operations under

Part 121 or Part 135.

Because Public Law 106–181 is now

in effect, the FAA intends to issue a

notice of proposed rulemaking to

propose the minimum altitude which

would complete the statutory definition

of a ‘‘commercial air tour operation.’’

See 49 U.S.C. Section 40128(f)(4)(A)(i).

Issued in Washington, DC on May 11,

2000.

L. Nicholas Lacey,

Director, Flight Standards Service.

[FR Doc. 00–13368 Filed 5–24–00; 10:58 am]

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