Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 217 / Friday, November 8, 2024 / Notices 88863 

3The Final Rule to Amend Rules Requiring 

Reporting of Mishandled Baggage, Regulatory 

Impact Analysis, October 18, 2016, estimated a data 

entry burden of 5 seconds per wheelchair or scooter 

recorded manually. See Docket No. RITA–2011– 

0001. 

process the data and to submit the 

report through DOT’s electronic 

submission system. 

In addition, the estimated total annual 

burden is based on the assumption that 

most respondents employ automated 

processes to record that an item 

enplaned is a wheelchair or scooter for 

the purposes of reporting data on 

wheelchairs and scooters to DOT. For a 

carrier that manually records this 

information, such as by having their 

agent type information describing a 

wheelchair or scooter into the airline’s 

system, DOT estimates that the airline 

would spend approximately 5 seconds 

(.00138 hours) per item to manually 

enter the data.3 DOT estimates that 

12,000 Wheelchairs and scooters total 

are recorded manually per year. 

Administrative Issues 

The Confidential Information 

Protection and Statistical Efficiency Act 

of 2002 (44 U.S.C. 3501) requires a 

statistical agency to clearly identify 

information it collects for non-statistical 

purposes. BTS hereby notifies the 

respondents and the public that BTS 

uses the information it collects under 

this OMB approval for non-statistical 

purposes including, but not limited to, 

publication of both respondent’s 

identity and its data, submission of the 

information to agencies outside BTS for 

review, analysis and possible use in 

regulatory and other administrative 

matters. 

Comments Invited 

We invite comments on: (a) Whether 

the collection of information is 

necessary for the proper performance of 

the functions of DOT, including 

whether the information will have 

practical utility; (b) the accuracy of 

DOT’s estimate of the burden of the 

proposed information collection; (c) 

ways to enhance the quality, utility and 

clarity of the information to be 

collected; and (d) ways to minimize the 

burden of the collection of information 

on respondents. 

All responses to this notice will be 

summarized and included in the request 

for OMB approval. All comments will 

also become a matter of public record on 

the docket. 

Issued this 4th day of November 2024 at 

Washington, DC. 

Rolf Schmitt, 

Acting Director, Office of Airline Information, 

Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Office of 

the Assistant Secretary for Research and 

Technology. 

[FR Doc. 2024–25927 Filed 11–7–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–9X–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Bureau of Transportation Statistics 

[Docket ID Number DOT–OST–2014–0031] 

Agency Information Collection; 

Activity Under OMB Review; Report of 

Financial and Operating Statistics for 

Small Aircraft Operators 

AGENCY: Bureau of Transportation 

Statistics (BTS), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: In compliance with the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the 

Bureau of Transportation Statistics 

invites the general public, industry and 

other governmental parties to comment 

on the continuing need for and 

usefulness of BTS collecting financial, 

traffic and operating statistics from 

small certificated and commuter air 

carriers. Small certificated air carriers 

(operate aircraft with 60 seats or less or 

with 18,000 pounds of payload capacity 

or less) currently must file the two 

quarterly schedules: F–1 ‘‘Report of 

Financial Data’’, F–2 ‘‘Report of Aircraft 

Operating Expenses and Related 

Statistics’’, and Commuter air carriers 

must file the Schedule F–1 ‘‘Report of 

Financial Data’’. Commenters should 

address whether BTS accurately 

estimated the reporting burden and if 

there are other ways to enhance the 

quality, utility, and clarity of the 

information collected. 

DATES: Written comments should be 

submitted by January 7, 2025. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Cecelia Robinson, Office of Airline 

Information, RTS–42, Room E34–110, 

OST–R, BTS, 1200 New Jersey Avenue 

SE, Washington, DC 20590–0001, 

telephone number (202) 893–0515, fax 

number (202) 366–3383 or email 

cecelia.robinson@dot.gov. 

Jennifer Rodes, Office of Airline 

Information, RTS–42, Room E32–103, 

OST–R, BTS, 1200 New Jersey Avenue 

SE, Washington, DC 20590–0001, 

telephone number (202) 366–8513, fax 

number (202) 366–3383 or email 

Jennifer.rodes@dot.gov. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

identified by DOT Docket ID Number 

DOT–OST–2014–0031 by any of the 

following methods: 

Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

online instructions for submitting 

comments. 

Mail: Docket Services: U.S. 

Department of Transportation, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building 

Ground Floor, Room W12–140, 

Washington, DC 20590–0001. 

Hand Delivery or Courier: West 

Building Ground Floor, Room W12–140, 

1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, between 9 

a.m. and 5 p.m. ET, Monday through 

Friday, except Federal holidays. 

Fax: 202–366–3383. 

Instructions: Identify docket number, 

DOT–OST–2014–0031, at the beginning 

of your comments, and send two copies. 

To receive confirmation that DOT 

received your comments, include a selfaddressed stamped postcard. Internet 

users may access all comments received 

by DOT at http://www.regulations.gov. 

All comments are posted electronically 

without charge or edits, including any 

personal information provided. 

Comments: Comments should identify 

the associated OMB approval #2138– 

0009 and Docket ID Number DOT–OST– 

2014–0031. Persons wishing the 

Department to acknowledge receipt of 

their comments must submit with those 

comments a self-addressed stamped 

postcard on which the following 

statement is made: Comments on OMB 

#2138–0009, Docket—DOT–OST–2014– 

0031. The postcard will be date/time 

stamped and returned. 

Privacy Act: Anyone is able to search 

the electronic form of all comments 

received into any of our dockets by the 

name of the individual submitting the 

comment (or signing the comment, if 

submitted on behalf of an association, 

business, labor union, etc.). You may 

review DOT’s complete Privacy Act 

Statement in the Federal Register 

published on April 11, 2000 (65 FR 

19477–78). 

Docket: For access to the docket to 

read background documents or 

comments received, go to http://

www.regulations.gov or the street 

address listed above. Follow the online 

instructions for accessing the dockets. 

Electronic Access: You may access 

comments received for this notice at 

http://www.regulations.gov, by 

searching docket DOT–OST–2014–0031. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

OMB Approval No.: 2138–0009. 

Title: Report of Financial and 

Operating Statistics for Small Aircraft 

Operators. 

Form No.: BTS Form 298–C. 


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88864 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 217 / Friday, November 8, 2024 / Notices 

Type of Review: Extension of a 

currently approved collection for the 

financial data. 

Respondents: Small certificated (28) 

and commuter air carriers (33). 

Schedule F1 

Number of Respondents: 61. 

Number of Annual responses: 244. 

Total Burden per Response: 4 hours. 

Total Annual Burden: 976 hours. 

Schedule F2 

Number of Respondents: 28. 

Number of Annual responses: 112. 

Total Burden per Response: 12 hours. 

Total Annual Burden: 1,344 hours. 

Needs and Uses: Program uses for 

Form 298–C financial data are as 

follows: 

Mail Rates 

The Department of Transportation 

sets and updates the Intra-Alaska Bush 

mail rates based on carrier aircraft 

operating expense, traffic, and 

operational data. Form 298–C cost data, 

especially fuel costs, terminal expenses, 

and line haul expenses are used in 

arriving at rate levels. DOT revises the 

established rates based on the 

percentage of unit cost changes in the 

carriers’ operations. These updating 

procedures have resulted in the carrier’s 

receiving rates of compensation that 

more closely parallel their costs of 

providing mail service and contribute to 

the carriers’ economic well-being. 

Essential Air Service 

DOT often has to select a carrier to 

provide a community’s essential air 

service. The selection criteria include 

historic presence in the community, 

reliability of service, financial stability 

and cost structure of the air carrier. 

Carrier Fitness 

Fitness determinations are made for 

both new entrants and established U.S. 

domestic carriers proposing a 

substantial change in operations. A 

portion of these applications consists of 

an operating plan for the first year (14 

CFR part 204) and an associated 

projection of revenues and expenses. 

The carrier’s operating costs, included 

in these projections, are compared 

against the cost data in Form 298–C for 

a carrier or carriers with the same 

aircraft type and similar operating 

characteristics. Such a review validates 

the reasonableness of the carrier’s 

operating plan. 

The quarterly financial submissions 

by commuter and small certificated air 

carriers are used in determining each 

carrier’s continuing fitness to operate. 

Section 41738 of title 49 of the United 

States Code requires DOT to find all 

commuter and small certificated air 

carriers fit, willing, and able to conduct 

passenger service as a prerequisite to 

providing such service to an eligible 

essential air service point. In making a 

fitness determination, DOT reviews 

three areas of a carrier’s operation: (1) 

the qualifications of its management 

team, (2) its disposition to comply with 

laws and regulations, and (3) its 

financial posture. DOT must determine 

whether or not a carrier has sufficient 

financial resources to conduct its 

operations without imposing undue risk 

on the traveling public. Moreover, once 

a carrier begins conducting flight 

operations, DOT is required to monitor 

its continuing fitness. 

Senior DOT officials must be kept 

fully informed and advised of all 

current and developing economic issues 

affecting the airline industry. In 

preparing financial condition reports or 

status reports on a particular airline, 

financial and traffic data are analyzed. 

Briefing papers prepared for senior DOT 

officials may use the same information. 

The Confidential Information 

Protection and Statistical Efficiency Act 

of 2002 (44 U.S.C. 3501 note), requires 

a statistical agency to clearly identify 

information it collects for non-statistical 

purposes. BTS hereby notifies the 

respondents and the public that BTS 

uses the information it collects under 

this OMB approval for non-statistical 

purposes including, but not limited to, 

publication of both Respondent’s 

identity and its data, submission of the 

information to agencies outside BTS for 

review, analysis and possible use in 

regulatory and other administrative 

matters. 

Issued in Washington, DC, November 4, 

2024. 

Rolf Schmitt, 

Acting Director, Office of Airline Information, 

Bureau of Transportation Statistics. 

[FR Doc. 2024–25926 Filed 11–7–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–9X–P 


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