Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 58 / Wednesday, March 26, 2014 / Notices 16857 

1 73 FR 29550 (May 21, 2008). 

2 73 FR 29626 (May 21, 2008); Docket FAA–2008– 

0517. 

3 73 FR 60544, amended by 73 FR 66516 (Nov. 

10, 2008). 

4 74 FR 52134 (Oct. 9, 2009). 

5 74 FR 51648. 

6 76 FR 18618. 

7 78 FR 28280. 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

[Docket No. FAA–2008–0221] 

Operating Limitations at Newark 

Liberty International Airport 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of Extension to Order. 

SUMMARY: This action amends the Order 

Limiting Operations at Newark Liberty 

International Airport (EWR) that 

published on May 21, 2008, and was 

amended on October 7, 2009, April 4, 

2011, and May 14, 2013. The Order 

remains effective until the final Rule on 

Slot Management and Transparency for 

LaGuardia Airport, John F. Kennedy 

International Airport, and Newark 

Liberty International Airport becomes 

effective but not later than October 29, 

2016. 

DATES: This amendment is effective on 

March 26, 2014. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

technical questions concerning this 

Order contact: Susan Pfingstler, System 

Operations Services, Air Traffic 

Organization, Federal Aviation 

Administration, 600 Independence 

Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20591; 

telephone (202) 385–7661; fax (202) 

385–7433; email susan.pfingstler@

faa.gov. For legal questions concerning 

this Order contact: Robert Hawks, Office 

of the Chief Counsel, Federal Aviation 

Administration, 800 Independence 

Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20591; 

telephone: (202) 267–7143; facsimile: 

(202) 267–7971; email: rob.hawks@

faa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Availability of Rulemaking Documents 

You may obtain an electronic copy 

using the Internet by: 

(1) Searching the Federal 

eRulemaking Portal (http://www.

regulations.gov); 

(2) Visiting the FAA’s Regulations and 

Policies Web page at http://www.faa.

gov/regulations_policies/; or 

(3) Accessing the Government 

Printing Office’s Web page at http://

www.gpoaccess.gov/fr/index.html. 

You also may obtain a copy by 

sending a request to the Federal 

Aviation Administration, Office of 

Rulemaking, ARM–1, 800 Independence 

Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20591, or 

by calling (202) 267–9680. Make sure to 

identify the amendment number or 

docket number of this rulemaking. 

Background 

EWR has become one of the most 

delay-prone airports in the country. In 

2007, demand during peak hours 

approached or exceeded the average 

runway capacity, resulting in significant 

volume-related delays. In May 2008, the 

FAA placed temporary limits on 

scheduled operations at EWR to mitigate 

persistent congestion and delays at the 

airport.1 This Order also mitigated 

FAA’s concern about a spillover effect 

resulting from limiting operations at 

John F. Kennedy International Airport 

(JFK). With a temporary schedule limit 

order in place, the FAA proposed a 

long-term rule that would limit the 

number of scheduled and unscheduled 

operations at EWR.2 On October 10, 

2008, the FAA published the Congestion 

Management Rule for John F. Kennedy 

International Airport and Newark 

Liberty International Airport, which 

would have become effective on 

December 9, 2008.3 That rule was stayed 

by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 

District of Columbia Circuit and 

subsequently rescinded by the FAA.4

The FAA further extended the May 21, 

2008, Order placing temporary limits on 

scheduled operations at EWR on 

October 7, 2009,5 on April 4, 2011,6 and 

on May 14, 2013.7

Under the Order, as amended, the 

FAA (1) maintains the current hourly 

limits on 81 scheduled operations at 

EWR during the peak period; (2) 

imposes an 80 percent minimum usage 

requirement for Operating 

Authorizations (OAs) with defined 

exceptions; (3) provides a mechanism 

for withdrawal of OAs for FAA 

operational reasons; (4) establishes 

procedures to allocate withdrawn, 

surrendered, or unallocated OAs; and 

(5) allows for trades and leases of OAs 

for consideration for the duration of the 

Order. The reasons for issuing the Order 

have not changed appreciably since it 

was implemented. Without the 

operational limitations imposed by this 

Order, the FAA expects severe 

congestion-related delays would occur 

at EWR and at other airports throughout 

the National Airspace System (NAS). 

The FAA is engaged in an effort to 

implement a long-term rule at 

LaGuardia Airport (LGA), JFK, and 

EWR. The FAA is developing a notice 

of proposed rulemaking for Slot 

Management and Transparency for 

LaGuardia Airport, John F. Kennedy 

International Airport, and Newark 

Liberty International Airport (RIN 2120– 

AJ89), which currently is under review. 

At this time, the FAA is unable to 

predict the date on which that rule 

would become effective. Accordingly, 

the FAA has concluded it is necessary 

to extend the expiration date of this 

Order until the final Rule on Slot 

Management and Transparency for 

LaGuardia Airport, John F. Kennedy 

International Airport, and Newark 

Liberty International Airport becomes 

effective but not later than October 29, 

2016. This expiration date coincides 

with the expiration dates for the Orders 

limiting scheduled operations at JFK 

and LGA, as also amended by notices in 

today’s Federal Register. No 

amendments other than the expiration 

date have been made to this Order. 

The FAA finds that notice and 

comment procedures under 5 U.S.C. 

n 553(b) are impracticable and contrary 

to the public interest. The FAA further 

finds that good cause exists to make this 

Order effective in less than 30 days. 

The Amended Order 

The Order, as amended, is recited 

below in its entirety. 

1. This Order assigns operating 

authority to conduct an arrival or a 

departure at EWR during the affected 

hours to the U.S. air carrier or foreign 

air carrier identified in the appendix to 

this Order. The FAA will not assign 

operating authority under this Order to 

any person or entity other than a 

certificated U.S. or foreign air carrier 

with appropriate economic authority 

and FAA operating authority under 14 

CFR part 121, 129, or 135. This Order 

applies to the following: 

a. All U.S. air carriers and foreign air 

carriers conducting scheduled 

operations at EWR as of the date of this 

Order, any U.S. air carrier or foreign air 

carrier that operates under the same 

designator code as such a carrier, and 

any air carrier or foreign-flag carrier that 

has or enters into a codeshare agreement 

with such a carrier. 

b. All U.S. air carriers or foreign air 

carriers initiating scheduled or regularly 

conducted commercial service to EWR 

while this Order is in effect. 

c. The Chief Counsel of the FAA, in 

consultation with the Vice President, 

System Operations Services, is the final 

decisionmaker for determinations under 

this Order. 

2. This Order governs scheduled 

arrivals and departures at EWR from 6 

a.m. through 10:59 p.m., Eastern Time, 

Sunday through Saturday. 


sroberts on DSK5SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
16858 Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 58 / Wednesday, March 26, 2014 / Notices 

3. This Order takes effect at 6 a.m., 

Eastern Time, on June 20, 2008, and will 

expire when the final Rule on Slot 

Management and Transparency for 

LaGuardia Airport, John F. Kennedy 

International Airport, and Newark 

Liberty International Airport becomes 

effective but not later than October 29, 

2016. 

4. Under the authority provided to the 

Secretary of Transportation and the 

FAA Administrator by 49 U.S.C. 40101, 

40103 and 40113, we hereby order that: 

a. No U.S. air carrier or foreign air 

carrier initiating or conducting 

scheduled or regularly conducted 

commercial service at EWR may 

conduct such operations without an 

Operating Authorization assigned by the 

FAA. 

b. Except as provided in the appendix 

to this Order, scheduled U.S. air carrier 

and foreign air carrier arrivals and 

departures will not exceed 81 per hour 

from 6 a.m. through 10:59 p.m., Eastern 

Time. 

c. The Administrator may change the 

limits if he determines that capacity 

exists to accommodate additional 

operations without a significant increase 

in delays. 

5. For administrative tracking 

purposes only, the FAA will assign an 

identification number to each Operating 

Authorization. 

6. A carrier holding an Operating 

Authorization may request the 

Administrator’s approval to move any 

arrival or departure scheduled from 6 

a.m. through 10:59 p.m. to another half 

hour within that period. Except as 

provided in paragraph seven, the carrier 

must receive the written approval of the 

Administrator, or his delegate, prior to 

conducting any scheduled arrival or 

departure that is not listed in the 

appendix to this Order. All requests to 

move an allocated Operating 

Authorization must be submitted to the 

FAA Slot Administration Office, 

facsimile (202) 267–7277 or email 7- 

AWA-Slotadmin@faa.gov, and must 

come from a designated representative 

of the carrier. If the FAA cannot approve 

a carrier’s request to move a scheduled 

arrival or departure, the carrier may 

then apply for a trade in accordance 

with paragraph seven. 

7. For the duration of this Order, a 

carrier may enter into a lease or trade of 

an Operating Authorization to another 

carrier for any consideration. Notice of 

a trade or lease under this paragraph 

must be submitted in writing to the FAA 

Slot Administration Office, facsimile 

(202) 267–7277 or email 7-AWASlotadmin@faa.gov, and must come 

from a designated representative of each 

carrier. The FAA must confirm and 

approve these transactions in writing 

prior to the effective date of the 

transaction. The FAA will approve 

transfers between carriers under the 

same marketing control up to five 

business days after the actual operation, 

but only to accommodate operational 

disruptions that occur on the same day 

of the scheduled operation. The FAA’s 

approval of a trade or lease does not 

constitute a commitment by the FAA to 

grant the associated historical rights to 

any operator in the event that slot 

controls continue at EWR after this 

order expires. 

8. A carrier may not buy, sell, trade, 

or transfer an Operating Authorization, 

except as described in paragraph seven. 

9. Historical rights to Operating 

Authorizations and withdrawal of those 

rights due to insufficient usage will be 

determined on a seasonal basis and in 

accordance with the schedule approved 

by the FAA prior to the commencement 

of the applicable season. 

a. For each day of the week that the 

FAA has approved an operating 

schedule, any Operating Authorization 

not used at least 80% of the time over 

the period authorized by the FAA under 

this paragraph will be withdrawn by the 

FAA for the next applicable season 

except: 

i. The FAA will treat as used any 

Operating Authorization held by a 

carrier on Thanksgiving Day, the Friday 

following Thanksgiving Day, and the 

period from December 24 through the 

first Saturday in January. 

ii. The Administrator of the FAA may 

waive the 80% usage requirement in the 

event of a highly unusual and 

unpredictable condition which is 

beyond the control of the carrier and 

which affects carrier operations for a 

period of five consecutive days or more. 

b. Each carrier holding an Operating 

Authorization must forward in writing 

to the FAA Slot Administration Office a 

list of all Operating Authorizations held 

by the carrier and for each Operating 

Authorization, along with a listing of 

the Operating Authorizations and: 

i. The dates within each applicable 

season on which it intends to 

commence and to cease scheduled 

operations. 

A. For each winter scheduling season, 

the report must be received by the FAA 

no later than August 15 during the 

preceding summer. 

B. For each summer scheduling 

season, the report must be received by 

the FAA no later than January 15 during 

the preceding winter. 

ii. The completed operations for each 

day of the applicable scheduling season: 

A. No later than September 1 for the 

summer scheduling season. 

B. No later than January 15 for the 

winter scheduling season. 

iii. A final report of the completed 

operations for each day of the 

scheduling season within 30 days after 

the last day of the applicable scheduling 

season. 

10. In the event that a carrier 

surrenders to the FAA any Operating 

Authorization assigned to it under this 

Order or if there are unallocated 

Operating Authorizations, the FAA will 

determine whether the Operating 

Authorizations should be reallocated. 

The FAA may temporarily allocate an 

Operating Authorization at its 

discretion. Such temporary allocations 

will not be entitled to historical status 

for the next applicable scheduling 

season under paragraph 9. 

11. If the FAA determines that an 

involuntary reduction in the number of 

allocated Operating Authorizations is 

required to meet operational needs, 

such as reduced airport capacity, the 

FAA will conduct a weighted lottery to 

withdraw Operating Authorizations to 

meet a reduced hourly or half-hourly 

limit for scheduled operations. The FAA 

will provide at least 45 days’ notice 

unless otherwise required by 

operational needs. Any Operating 

Authorization that is withdrawn or 

temporarily suspended will, if 

reallocated, be reallocated to the carrier 

from which it was taken, provided that 

the carrier continues to operate 

scheduled service at EWR. 

12. The FAA will enforce this Order 

through an enforcement action seeking 

a civil penalty under 49 U.S.C. 46301(a). 

A carrier that is not a small business as 

defined in the Small Business Act, 15 

U.S.C. 632, will be liable for a civil 

penalty of up to $25,000 for every day 

that it violates the limits set forth in this 

Order. A carrier that is a small business 

as defined in the Small Business Act 

will be liable for a civil penalty of up 

to $10,000 for every day that it violates 

the limits set forth in this Order. The 

FAA also could file a civil action in U.S. 

District Court, under 49 U.S.C. 46106, 

46107, seeking to enjoin any air carrier 

from violating the terms of this Order. 

13. The FAA may modify or withdraw 

any provision in this Order on its own 

or on application by any carrier for good 

cause shown. 

Issued in Washington, DC, on March 21, 

2014. 

Marc L. Warren, 

Acting Chief Counsel. 

[FR Doc. 2014–06663 Filed 3–25–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 


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